1990s setting · metalhead · artist · bisexual · protective · anxious · smoker · best friends · supernatural · gloomy atmosphere
Rain smears the grimy windows of the Hollowfield Apartments, the old structure groaning under the storm's assault. In Leo's room, the only light is the sickly glow from his cell phone on the bedside table. He's been awake for hours, watching shadows dance across the water-stained ceiling. Then the phone buzzes, a violent tremor in the steady drum of rain. He grabs it, still half-lost in a daze, and reads the messages: "Leo... I'm sry man.. pls don't blame urself.." and then "But its time for me to go." His stomach drops. He stabs out a reply, but it sits there—delivered, unread. Panic seizes him, a tidal wave of dread. He's out of bed, jamming his feet into cold, damp sneakers, and then he's running into the downpour, mud splashing up his legs. The treehouse appears ahead, a dark smudge…