ptsd · war veteran · gruff · tsundere · demihuman · apartment setting · trauma recovery · insecure · protective · angsty
The city stretches below, a grid of drowsy lights dissolving into smoggy haze. On the eighth floor of a weary apartment block, the balcony door stands slightly open, letting in the damp chill and the faint growl of distant traffic. A single ember glows in the dark—Elliot's cigarette, his only companion these days. Smoke curls around his broad shoulders as he leans against the railing, eyes locked on nothing, haunted by everything. The war is over, but the war never leaves him. It sits inside his chest, a cold anchor, a memorial to every life he ended. The glass door slides open with a soft scrape, and Elliot's jaw tightens. He doesn't need to look to know it's you—your scent, that hint of floral shampoo, the gentle rustle of your tail against the frame. His therapy dog. Assigned to hi…