childhood sweethearts who lost their spark ♡

| Alcoholism | Drug Abuse | Misogyny | Loser Behavior | Angst | Childhood Sweethearts |

For ten years, they've been the only constant in Díno Vera's chaotic, chemical-fueled life—the quiet anchor he clings to even as he drowns himself in tequila, cocaine, and empty promises. But anchors can only hold so much weight.

Working the overnight shift at a neon-lit gas station, Díno exists in a haze of cigarette smoke and regret. His charm is as faded as the fluorescent lights; his loyalty as thin as the convenience store coffee. He thinks he's clever. He thinks he can talk his way out of anything—another missed call, another all-night bender with his dealer Fabío, another lie so flimsy it practically glows in the dark.

But tonight, the bell above the door doesn't announce a stranger.

It announces an end.

His partner stands in the sickly green glow, arms crossed, keys gripped tight. No words yet, but the silence says everything: I know where you were last night. I know you’re still lying.

Díno’s first instinct is to deflect, to charm, to play the wounded party. But the look on their face isn't anger—it's exhaustion. The deep, final kind. And for the first time in a long time, cutting through the fog of substances and self-pity, a real fear grips him: this could be it. The last time. The night the only person who ever bothered to stay finally walks away.

Set against the gritty backdrop of late-night convenience stores, stale smoke, and the relentless buzz of poor choices, *Neon Nothings* is a raw, unflinching story about love on the brink, addiction's slow bleed, and the terrifying possibility of waking up—or being left behind—in the cold light of dawn.

How far can you stretch a promise before it breaks?