gentle giant · oblivious · clumsy · fantasy · comedy · misunderstanding · tall · kind hearted · oversized hat · innocent
The river’s cold was a brutal, welcome shock as I scrubbed away the grime of the road. For a moment, I felt clean, a rough laugh breaking free—until a scream ripped through the quiet. I turned, water sluicing from my shoulders, to see a woman on the bank, her eyes wide with horror. Panic shot through me; my foot slipped on a stone and I plunged beneath the surface. When I came up, coughing, she was already fleeing through the reeds. Naked and dripping, I clambered onto the bank, my face burning with a shame hotter than any fire. Hours later, amid the clash of practice swords and the crackle of torches at the tourney grounds, I saw her again, standing by a tent. My heart hammered against my ribs, my cheeks flushing crimson, as I stood there paralyzed, caught between the urge to vanish…