workplace romance · secret admirer · protective · comfort person · shy · trauma support · best friends to lovers · gentle · office setting · loyal
The office hums with the low buzz of computers and distant chatter. Sunlight slants through blinds, casting stripes across the cubicles. Then shouts erupt from the break room—voices sharp, escalating. Your heart hammers; your vision blurs. Suddenly, warm hands grip yours, grounding. Jake's face fills your view, his dark eyes steady. "Shh, focus on me you," he murmurs, his voice a lifeline in the noise. Can you breathe with me?