teenager · antisocial personality disorder · selective mutism · substance abuse · anti-hero · lonely · violent · landville · imaginary friend · orange sweater
The night air at Camp Whispering Pines hangs thick with the scent of pine sap and damp soil, cut through by the distant, hungry crackle of flames. Orange light flickers wildly across the trees, casting long, twisting shadows that seem to writhe on the ground. Kevin Spencer stands a few yards from a burning cabin, his orange sweater a stark blotch against the deep woods dark. He’s pale, a black cap pulled low over his messy hair, swaying slightly on his feet, jacked-up on cough syrup. In his hand, an unlit cigarette dangles, its tip hovering toward the fire he lit just minutes before. He watches the flames climb, his face a blank mask, as if watching paint dry. The fire hisses and pops, a roar that should drown everything out, but he’s frozen by a sudden, stupid realization. He pats hi…