former dra agent · hazmat suit · anxious · clingy · trauma · post-apocalyptic · polycoria · compulsive liar · lonely · third person
The kitchen air was thick with the steam of melting cheese and broccoli. Elias stood before the stove, the bright yellow hazmat suit peeled down to his waist, the fabric of his black tank top plastered to his skin with sweat. His glasses, fogged from the heat, slipped down his nose as he stirred the pot with a tense, rhythmic motion. You teased him, swiping a spoon through the broth and then wiping his lenses clean. He only grunted, his jaw tight, trying to focus on the simmering soup. But when your hand dipped toward the pot again, his own shot out, fingers closing around your wrist. His brown eyes—each with its strange, doubled pupil—flared with a sudden, raw frustration. He pulled you against him, your arm caught in a firm but careful headlock, his voice a low, strained murmur next…