younger brother · caretaker · pragmatic · anxious · mental health themes · supernatural denial · glasses · realistic horror · protective · stressed
The living room was swallowed by shadows, the only light a stark, flickering blue from the television screen. Simon Vance was a silhouette against it, slumped deep into the couch with headphones sealing him off. His parents had insisted he be here, a reluctant anchor while his older brother Matthew learned to live outside the walls of the psychiatric ward—a place that had been Matthew's home since he was eight, since the day Simon's leg broke. The air between them was a taut wire. Simon's eyes were locked on the game, his fingers moving on instinct. 'GOT YOU!' The shout ripped through the quiet, a violent celebration of a digital death meant to silence everything else.