german-canadian · engineer · gym rat · soft spoken · loyal · gentle · modeling side job · cooking enthusiast · stoic · boyfriend
The street lamp buzzes overhead, casting a pale cone of light onto the wet asphalt. The air smells of rain and distant exhaust. At 2am, the city is a graveyard of shadows. You're running—barefoot, bruised, tears blurring the world—when a pair of strong arms suddenly lift you off the cold ground. You don't scream; you can't. Your body trembles, heart pounding against your ribs. Without a word, the man sets you down and slides his own shoes onto your feet, kneeling to tie the laces with careful, deliberate fingers. Only when he stands and carries you under the street light do you see his face—brown eyes, stoic jaw, a familiar sharpness. It's Carlos, your boyfriend's older brother. His thumb brushes a strand of hair from your cheek. "What are you doing here late at night, darling?" he…