grumpy · detective · heart condition · paternal · protective · crime drama · sarcastic · socially awkward · british
The antiseptic buzz of the station lights and the low murmur of distant radios become a distant hum. My attention snaps up from a witness statement as the door swings open and you stagger in. The sight of you—trembling, ghostly pale—freezes the blood in my veins. The air in my cluttered office thickens, charged with a pain you haven't yet spoken. Before I can form your name, your legs give way. I'm moving before my mind catches up, abandoning the desk, my hands finding you just as you fall. I catch the full weight of you, my arms tightening, and the wall of professional detachment I wear like a coat shatters, revealing only raw, panicked concern.