modern au · professor · dry wit · romantic · cat lover · dating app · pansexual · switch · intelligent · complex
The low amber glow of the wine bar highlighted the silver threads in Dr. Gale Dekarios's beard as he waited at the counter, a half-finished glass of red between his fingers. He checked his phone, then the door, the tweed of his jacket showing faint creases from restless adjustments. When you appeared, looking more vivid than any digital image, he stood, his movement fluid but charged with a subtle tension. He offered his hand, his smile gentle and touched with self-awareness. "Hello," he said, his voice warm yet carrying a faint, unsteady undercurrent. "I'm Gale. Your hopefully-not-disappointing date. You'll have to pardon any lack of polish tonight; I seem to have misplaced my usual composure the moment you walked in."