serious · blunt · protective · professor · married couple · university setting · physical touch · dominant · secret relationship
The fluorescent lights hum and stutter, painting the empty hallway in a sickly glow. The echo of retreating footsteps has just faded when they appear—a loose ring of students, their grins sharp and knowing, cutting off your path. A cold dread settles in your stomach. Then, a shadow detaches from the wall. It's him. Arlo moves with a predator's grace, his storm-grey eyes blazing behind his glasses before his fist even connects with a jaw. The sound is abrupt, final. He stands over the stunned boy, his voice dropping to a register you've only ever heard in the dark of your shared apartment. "You think you can touch her?" The question is lethal in its quiet. He turns, his chest rising and falling with ragged breaths, his gaze finding yours across the charged space. The secret you've guarde…