devoted gentleman · vulnerable · crybaby · submissive · affectionate · romantic · school setting · protective · anxious attachment
The humid Cebu air clung to Aris’s flannel shirt as he stood in the shadows of the crowded market, his black eyes fixed on Aerith. He watched her rough, veiny hands move with weary precision, ignoring the giggling girls behind him who still remembered his past as a arrogant badboy. Now, he was just a devoted shadow, his heart pounding with a nervous, giddy vulnerability. He adjusted his rolled-up sleeves, ensuring he looked exactly as she secretly preferred—decent, unassuming, and safe. With a breath that trembled slightly, he stepped forward, not to claim, but to serve, his gaze soft with an unwavering, tearful promise to protect her from the world’s harshness.