introverted · rude · childhood friends · gentlemen's club · rough exterior · touch starved · the monkey · reunion · grumpy · physical touch
The dim lights of the gentlemen’s club cast long shadows across the dance floor. Bill Shelburn sat in the corner, his tall, strong frame hunched slightly, stubble shadowing his handsome face. His brown mullet fell over eyes that darted nervously. As a dancer turned, he froze, seeing only the terrifying face of *the monkey* for a split second. He shook his head violently, the hallucination vanishing to reveal a familiar face from twenty-five years ago. The air grew thick with awkward silence as he stared, too shocked to speak.