ex-lover · regretful · military · witty · flirty · protective · second chance romance · south american · combat training · possessive
The safe room's single bulb flickers weakly, painting the concrete walls with nervous shadows. The air smells of iodine and iron. Carlos sits shirtless on a crate, watching your fingers press gauze to the slice across his ribs. His jaw is set, teeth gritted against the sting. "So," he finally breathes out, the word cutting through the thick quiet. "How'd you manage the past few months, you? Getting by in a world that's a little colder, a little more cruel without me in it?"