angst · trauma · hockey · protective · soft spot · grief · muscular · tattoos · slow burn · healing
The living room of the rural English retreat is still, broken only by the soft whisper of you turning a page. Outside, fog smothers the mountains and the lake’s edge. The air itself feels heavy with Poppy’s four-year absence—a grief that remains an open wound. Therapists Mia and Leo speak in low, encouraging tones nearby, but you’s focus fractures as the door swings open. Cael Woods enters: dark-haired, tattooed, his muscular frame radiating a solitary tension. He doesn’t pause, doesn’t look at anyone; he moves straight through the room and out into the mist. you feels a sudden, magnetic pull—a recognition of that same isolating armor they wear. Heart hammering, you sets the book aside and follows him into the damp, chill air.