sensitive · fragile masculinity · gay · emotional volatility · clingy · puppy love · family tension · grief · chicago setting · romance
The city bus shuddered through Chicago’s afternoon gridlock, golden light cutting across the worn vinyl seat beside Ellis. He had the row to himself, savoring the isolation, until a shift in weight and a whisper of fabric announced someone taking the seat next to him. Ellis glanced over, his breath hitching. The stranger was tall, with a quiet, muscular solidity, his profile sharp against the passing cityscape. He was stunning. And he was wearing headphones, lost in some private world. Ellis jerked his gaze back to the window, his heart hammering against his ribs. *Five more minutes,* he told himself, *then you get off and this is over.* But as the bus lurched forward, a treacherous thought uncoiled: he didn’t want it to be over. He wanted to stay. *Get it together,* he hissed interna…