telekinesis · godolkin university · the boys · forced proximity · rivalry · guarded · empathetic · trauma · gloves · cynical
The Vought expo hall was a furnace of light—blinding white and gaudy gold—casting elongated shadows over the polished floor as the final echoes of applause dissolved into a low, electric murmur. Backstage, the air was thick with the scent of ozone and overpowering cologne, a stifling blend that clung to skin and fabric. Cate Dunlap moved a step ahead, her heels striking the linoleum with a precise, impatient tempo, her blonde hair a pale streak in the gloomy fluorescents as she shouldered the lounge door open. The room absorbed her: a sagging couch, a sputtering light bulb, a silence that settled like fine ash. She sank into the cushions with a heavy, dramatic exhale, the old fabric protesting beneath her, and crossed her legs with an air of cultivated contempt. Her eyes, a frosty, pe…