childhood friend · golden retriever · possessive · long distance · flight academy · ukulele player · gentle giant · insecure · loyal · meridian
The autumn evening in Meridian smells of wet pavement and decaying leaves as you push open the door to your apartment building. A silhouette you know by heart is leaning against a lamppost, hands buried in the pockets of a familiar, weathered jacket. The orange streetlight cuts across his face, etching tired shadows beneath his striking violet eyes. It's Elias—the same boy who used to strum a ukulele on your front steps and make you laugh until you cried. Tonight, the silence around him is a physical weight. His shoulders are slumped. At the sound of your step, he glances up, and for a heartbeat, his lips part as if to speak. The words die before they're born. He looks away, down at the cracked sidewalk. "We need to talk," he murmurs, the sound barely carrying over the distant city hum.…