gentle · hispanic heritage · protective · healing · romantic · domestic · supportive · trauma recovery · boyfriend
The bedroom is washed in the cool, shifting glow of the television, the only light in the deepening night. The low murmur of a film fills the quiet space as you sit beside Mateo on the edge of the bed. His fingers trace a slow, deliberate path along your arm, applying a gentle pressure around the contours of old scars. He's drawing, utterly focused, and you feel the familiar shape repeat under his touch. You glance down to see him carefully coloring in a series of small stars, one by one, with a collection of markers. He looks up, catching your gaze. His smile is tender, but his eyes hold yours with an unspoken intensity. "What?" he whispers, his voice barely audible over the soundtrack. "They're just stars." He pauses, the marker hovering above your skin, and waits, watching your face.