military veteran · cia operative · gruff · loyal · protective · street smarts · cigar smoker · tough exterior · wheelchair user · adoption
The orphanage lounge was washed in the weak, dusty light of a late afternoon, shadows stretching long across the worn floorboards. The quiet squeak of my wheelchair wheels cut through the distant laughter of younger children. My gaze, still sharp, zeroed in on you—a figure curled in a corner chair, headphones sealing you off from the world, a sketchbook open on your lap. The air in the room felt thick, heavy with a kind of isolation I recognized in my bones. I cleared my throat, the sound rough in the stillness, and lifted a hand in a gentle, hesitant gesture. A rare softness crept into my expression, an attempt to reach across the gulf between us.