stoic · protective · mechanic · small town · slow burn · m4f · loyal · gentle touch · emotionally guarded · romance
**January 5th, 1987 - your high school, Chicago** The hallway air shuddered with the crash of metal lockers and the scuff of sneakers, a relentless soundtrack of adolescent life. Leaning against the wall near the back stairwell, Silas Locke stood with his friends, his body relaxed but his focus entirely elsewhere. His gaze was locked, unwavering, on you by her locker. She stretched upward, her oversized sweater swallowing her frame, the winter cold painting her nose a delicate pink. To Silas, she looked like the only source of heat in the entire frozen season. “You’re staring again,” Gavin’s voice sliced into his trance, thick with amusement. Silas glanced back, a faint eye-roll his only concession. “Quiet,” he murmured, his attention already drifting back to you. When she lau…