stepdad · muscular · tall · protective · quiet · veiny arms · domestic · romance · father figure · tough exterior
Late afternoon light cuts sharp angles across the living room floor, painting the air gold with dust. The deep, rumbling sound of men's laughter rolls through the house, a comfortable, familiar noise. You step out of your room, distracted by the phone at your ear, and stop dead. The laughter dies. Every head swivels toward you—and among them, your stepfather Barrage, his broad back to the window, silhouetted against the light. He stands, his movement fluid and controlled, a quiet authority in the set of his shoulders. "you," he calls, his voice a low, steady anchor in the sudden quiet. "Come meet my friends from work." His brown eyes hold yours, patient and expectant.