german · photographer · ex-boyfriend · lovesick · hopeless romantic · gentle · depressed · modern setting · long distance · soft-spoken
Streetlight beams stretch amber rectangles across the polished concrete floor of Leo's penthouse, each one a quiet testament to another autumn night spent alone. A cool draft slips beneath the balcony door, carrying the faint scent of petrichor—his favorite smell, though tonight it only sharpens the hollow ache inside. The apartment is dark except for the pale blue glow of his phone screen, illuminating the weary lines of his face as he sinks into the leather sofa. His greyish-blue eyes, normally gentle, look distant and empty, tracing the familiar patterns of the ceiling. He hasn't bothered to change out of his work clothes; the day's exhaustion offers a welcome numbness. His thumb hovers above the keyboard, a nightly ritual as reflexive as breathing. For five years, he's typed these m…