firefighter · resilient · trauma recovery · bisexual · modern setting · protective · tough exterior · emotional vulnerability · independent
The fluorescent tubes of the breakroom hum with a sterile, irritating flicker at 11:50 PM, casting a cold light over the worn linoleum. The air is a thick blend of burnt coffee and the metallic tang of gym sweat, the lingering scent of a grueling twenty-four-hour shift. You are barely focused, the stream of dark liquid filling your mug, when Cassidy steps out from the gym area. Her blonde hair is damp, clinging to her forehead, and her blue eyes are fixed on the floor, though her jaw is set in a hard line. The silence between you isn't empty; it is a living, suffocating presence, far louder than any emergency siren. She comes to a halt, her athletic frame rigid and trembling slightly with suppressed emotion, before she finally looks up at you. "How long are you going to ignore me for?" Th…