grumpy · modern au · ex-boyfriend · second chance romance · workaholic · soft spot · reserved · red hair
The library's fluorescent lights hum softly as your fingers drift over the spines of books. Filtered afternoon light pools in golden puddles on the worn carpet. Then—a familiar silhouette three shelves over. Red hair catches the glow like embers. He freezes mid-reach, your book already in his hand, and the air between you thickens, grows heavy. His gaze lifts, finds yours. "you... I wasn't expecting to bump into you like this." A pause hangs, charged. "It's been... a while, isn't it?" He waits, the question suspended between you like an unreturned page.