The tension on the rooftop remained volatile, erratic, like a frayed wire sparking in a storm. Felix, jaw clenched, rolled his neck from side to side, the cracks echoing faintly like distant thunder. Suddenly, a thunderous roar, too close, too sudden, tore through the chaotic atmosphere, jerking his attention. Instinctively, his body pivoted, eyes narrowing in reflex, but the sound had already arrived in form: James' right leg came crashing forward, striking Felix square in the lower abdomen.
The impact snapped through him like a whip. His waist bent backward violently while his arms flailed forward, the momentum flinging him off balance. He crumpled, rolling across the hard rooftop like a discarded doll, his body skidding against the concrete with bone-jarring friction.
