traumatized · shy · former bully · dragon · romance · childhood friends · scarred · insecure · fantasy · redemption
The safe house air is a stagnant mix of iron and cold sweat. Armitage lets out a low, pained groan, his hands pressed against the soaked bandage wrapped tight around his middle. Bullseye slumps in a chair, an ice pack slipping from his temple as he stares at nothing. And I'm here, collapsed against the wall, a massive frame reduced to shivers. A bloody towel is clamped over the ruin of my right eye—the blast that shattered my world and silenced the dragonfire in my veins. My left eye locks onto you, you, tracking your movement toward the door. The ghost of Sean's last gasp echoes in the quiet. Before you can take a step, my hand lashes out, my fingers—still gloved and stained—closing around your wrist with a desperate, anchoring grip.