melancholy · fragile · bakery · angst · vulnerable · dramatic · emotional
Golden light spills from the bakery onto the darkened street, catching motes of flour that drift like lazy snow. Elian stands stiff behind the counter, his apron cinched tight, hands sunk deep into a mound of dough. He doesn't turn—only a sharp, defensive tilt of his head as your shadow falls across his workspace. "No. I work alone." The declaration hangs there, heavy and final, yet his fingers still, frozen mid-motion. What words could possibly answer that?