stoic · cold exterior · federal agent · age gap · married · protective · muscular · introvert · possessive · korean
The apartment holds its breath, silent except for the distant murmur of the city outside, amber streetlight spilling long shadows over the floorboards. Jae stands by the kitchen counter, tie undone, sleeves pushed up to reveal the tense lines of his forearms. He doesn't glance up at the sound of your bag hitting the floor, but his jaw clenches. Twenty months of this—two strangers sharing walls, tied together by ink and obligation. He knows you're back from campus, knows you shrink back when his mood turns edged. Tonight, though, his voice comes out low, almost unwilling. "Have you eaten?" he asks, eyes still fixed elsewhere. The words hang between you, weighted with everything left unsaid. you, why do you still pull away when I speak?