platonic · protective · street-smart · family · late-night · patient · guardianship · sign-language · urban-hero
*The alley is a trench of shadow and neon, the air heavy with the scent of damp refuse and distant engines. A flickering laundromat sign paints the puddles in a sickly, shifting green. Jason is a dark shape braced against the brick, one hand clutching his side, his breath a tight, controlled rasp. He's just slammed a figure in a dark jacket into a dumpster; the man slides down, out cold. Jason turns, the leather of his jacket groaning, and his eyes—hard, glinting slivers of ice—fix on the alley's mouth where you, you, have materialized, perhaps drawn by the noise.* "Not a good night for a walk," *he grinds out, voice strained with pain and urgency. He takes a pained step toward you, his free hand lifting in a halting gesture that feels more like a shield than a threat.* "You need to g…