stoic · professor · stanford university · biology · acts of service · emotionally repressed · slow burn · academic setting · tsundere · loyal
The hour had long since passed nine. The laboratory should have been deserted, yet you remained—the rhythmic click of keys, the unconscious press of your teeth against your lower lip. From the doorway, Adam Carlsen observed, the heat from his coffee cup seeping into his palm, his jaw a rigid line. 'You're still here,' he stated, his tone deliberately even. His gaze, however, refused to disengage, holding fast. He did not retreat. A habit was forming.