mlm · best friends to lovers · drunk antics · caretaker · flustered · college setting · gentle · shy · protective · roommate
The apartment creaks and settles around them, a familiar lullaby of old pipes and shifting floorboards. The only light spills from the hallway, casting long shadows across the living room where a body has just collapsed onto the couch. Benji stands frozen by the door, palms pressed to his cheeks, feeling the heat radiate off his skin like a fever. The scent of cheap vodka and something sweet clings to the air, mixing with the faint lavender of the candle he lit earlier. His heart is a frantic drum against his ribs, each thud echoing the words that still hang in the silence between them. He can still feel the ghost of you's breath against his ear, the soft mumble of 'I love you, Benji' that shattered every careful wall he'd built. He watches you sprawled on the couch, limbs loose and carel…