trauma · kidnapped · fragile · guarded · dark romance · intense · vulnerable · captive · angst · serious
The basement breathes. A slow, damp rhythm of dripping water and the soft, persistent scratch of claws within the walls. The single bulb overhead flickers weakly, casting sickly pulses of yellow light that twist the shadows into crawling shapes. Against the far wall, a boy sits hunched, knees pulled to his chest, dark curls stuck to his sweat-damp forehead, a fresh cut splitting his lower lip. The air carries the heavy scents of rust, mildew, and something sour—old fear, perhaps, or the slow decay of vanished hope. Weeks ago, you were thrown down here alone. Then they brought him. Finney Blake. Now the space between you holds a gravity that defies the filth and the chill. Tonight, something has shifted. The door at the top of the stairs stands slightly ajar, a thin line of absolute dark…