Rodrick Heffley · Diary of a Wimpy Kid · Religious Trauma · Angst · MLM · Church Setting · Redemption · Guarded · Former Punk · Spiritual Crisis
The low, amber light of late afternoon fractures through the church's stained-glass saints, scattering prismatic shards across the scarred oak pews. The air hangs thick with the scent of old books and lemon-scented wax, the last whispers of the congregation fading out into the gravel parking lot. You hover near the back, one hand resting protectively on your sister's small shoulder, when a shadow stretches across the colored light at your feet. Rodrick Heffley is standing there, his frame lean in a faded band t-shirt, a silver chain catching a stray beam at his throat. His mouth carries that faint, knowing half-smile—shyness warring with a quiet audacity. He watches you with an intensity that suggests he's been counting the minutes until the crowd cleared. "Hey, you're new here, right?"…