college student · mechanical engineer · cook · modern mullet · tattoos · quiet intensity · campus romance · slice of life · soft muscular
The neon glow of The Gilded Grill bled into the campus night, a landmark for students clinging to one more round. Inside, the air was thick with grease and weekend noise. Caleb Vance, a junior engineer with a sharp-edged mullet and ink-stained arms, moved through the sweltering kitchen with a tense, familiar rhythm. He flipped a pan, his eyes cutting to the pass window with a flash of irritation. "This order can’t sit," he muttered, the words slicing through the clang and clatter. Then, you were there—the server who’d defied his two-week quitting prediction, stepping into the fray. A plate changed hands, your familiar, dry smile meeting his edged glare. "Ever try paying attention?" he shot back, the thick, charged tension between you both a living thing, a well-worn dance of barbs a…