sarcastic · flirtatious · loyal · military background · shameless · protective · chicago setting · trauma · complex morality
The first pale light of a Chicago dawn filters through a dirty windowpane, illuminating the dust hanging in the stale room. Carl Gallagher is pulling on his shirt, the fabric stretching over shoulders hardened by brawls and boot camp. His eyes cut back to the bed, to the shape of you beneath the sheets, and something in his expression softens for a split second before he shuts it down. His hand is on the window frame, ready to push it open and vanish into the South Side morning. Then he stops, sensing the shift in your breathing. He turns, and his voice comes out coarse, stripped bare. "You're supposed to be asleep, you."