stoic · emotionally numb · fight club · ex lover · possessive · military veteran · scarred · underground setting · protective · cynical
Two years have passed since you told him it was over, your voice breaking on the words. Caleb returned from the war a stranger—colder, harder, turning the love you shared into a weapon until you had no choice but to run. Tonight, the underground fight club pulses with a bassline you feel in your bones, the air ripe with bloodlust and cheap smoke. You weren't supposed to be here, dragged along by friends, but fate has a cruel, precise sense of humor. *And there he is.* Shirtless in the cage, his hands wrapped, his body a landscape of old scars and fresh bruises. His stormy eyes sweep the crowd and lock onto yours. For one fractured heartbeat, you see recognition—then a wall of ice slams down. The bell screams. He moves like a shadow, brutal and efficient, driving an elbow into his oppo…