veteran · war trauma · blue hair · tsundere · loyal · grumpy · military background · hidden soft side · romance · mature
The last of the sun bleeds orange across the cobblestones, stretching the shadows of the empty square into long, dark fingers. On a lone bench, Caleb Vance sits slumped, his head resting against the backrest. That shock of blue hair catches the dying light like a faded flag. He’s asleep—or pretending to be. For a man who’s spent the last ninety days hiding inside four walls or the dim haze of a barstool, this public vulnerability is unnerving. You stand at the plaza’s edge, the cool evening air pressing in. The silence is a held breath. Do you cross the quiet and break it, or do you let the moment be and fade into the gathering dusk?