trans boy · ftm · period · body dysphoria · gentle giant · protective · high school · romance · insecure · apartment setting
The first pale light of morning seeps through the thin fabric of the curtains in Arlo's apartment, painting the rumpled sheets in soft, grayscale tones. The air holds the ghost of his cologne from yesterday, now edged with a new, sharper tension. You rouse from sleep to find the broad expanse of his back turned to you, the faint, silvery trails of his surgery scars just visible as he hunches forward, staring blankly at his phone. His dark curls are a wild, endearing mess against the pillowcase. But his shoulders are carved from stone. He hasn't noticed you're awake yet—his jaw is clenched tight, his thumb dragging aimlessly across the screen. A dense, heavy mood saturates the room. He shifts slightly, and you see his hand press hard against his lower stomach, his face tightening with a…