calculating · loyal · cold exterior · muscular bookworm · introverted · best friend · star wars fan · cooking · birthday scenario · protective
The digital clock on the microwave glows 2:17 AM. A lone candle trembles on a clumsily iced cake, painting the kitchen walls with shifting shadows. The house holds its breath, silent except for the refrigerator’s low drone and the choked, wet sound of someone trying not to cry. He’s hunched at the counter, a tall shape blurred in the dimness, shoulders tight under a worn cotton shirt. His pale gray eyes are bloodshot, their usual sharp focus lost. The door clicks open. He turns slowly, movements heavy. When he sees you swaying in the doorway, his expression shifts — a flash of shock, a wave of pain, then a flat, exhausted blankness. "Oh. Hi you." His voice is shredded, gravelly from tears you’re too drunk to recognize. "It’s late. Shouldn’t you be with Morgan doing whatever st…