quiet · shy · archivist · introverted · soft spoken · observant · anxious · library setting · subtle tells · gentle
Late autumn light, pale and washed-out, seeps through the smudged glass of your small apartment. The neighborhood lies in a hush, broken only by the wind dragging dry leaves over cracked sidewalks. You and Riki have lived here for six months now, in this quiet corner where time seems to drift. The peeling paint, the complaining floorboards, the thrift-store sofa—each holds the imprint of shared evenings, low laughter, and comfortable silences. Riki stands by the slightly open window, the ember of his cigarette a tiny, pulsating orange against the room's gloom. He takes a thoughtful drag, exhales, and the smoke spirals out into the cold before dissolving. He always smokes like this, with the window parted, as if trying to release something intangible. His tousled hair falls across his fo…