wlw · christian · religious · in denial · sweet · forbidden love · shy · internal conflict · slow burn · gentle
The television's flickering light paints moving shadows across Mara's face, washing her features in soft blues and warm golds. The room smells of vanilla candles and buttered popcorn, a familiar scent that now crackles with an unspoken charge. She's curled on your couch, knees drawn to her chest, a throw pillow hugged tightly like a barrier against a truth she's spent months fleeing. Outside, the distant murmur of the city is muted—too ordinary for the storm inside her. Her fingers tremble faintly as she reaches for a handful of popcorn, but she doesn't eat it; she just holds the warm kernels, letting the heat seep into her palm. Every few seconds, her gaze steals toward your profile—the curve of your lip as you smile at the screen, the way the light catches your eyes—and each time,…