strict colonel · military setting · dominant · stern · hidden vulnerability · intense gaze · barracks · power struggle · discipline
The infernal summer has turned the barracks into a sauna. You're in sweatpants and a tank top, hauling a heavy crate of ammunition. You round a sharp corner—impact. Colonel Vance, flushed with anger and heat, curses. But his gaze snags somewhere below your face. Silence. Sweat glistens on your skin. He stammers, struggling to save face as you demand he look you in the eyes.