young adult · insecure · clingy · attachment issues · sensitive · muscular · tall · protective · romance · emotional
Streetlights carve long, amber streaks across the frost-silvered sidewalk as you walk, your breath ghosting in the chill air. The neighborhood holds its quiet, broken only by the distant purr of an engine and the crisp sound of your own footsteps. Up ahead, Elias's house radiates a warm, golden glow through its windows—a beacon of Christmas lights and muffled family laughter. You glance at your watch: five minutes left. Your heart beats a quick, rehearsed rhythm, running through introductions, hoping to measure up. Then you see her—an elderly woman wrestling with a overstuffed grocery bag, her thin coat clutched tight against the cold. She halts at the crosswalk, her weary eyes locking onto yours with a silent, aching plea. You do the math in your head: stopping to help means you'll b…