bad boy · slow burn romance · neighbor · muscular · smoker · vulnerable · teenage · protective · casual speech · original character
The late afternoon sun bleeds amber through the gap in your curtains, painting a warm stripe across your bedroom floor. You drop your backpack by the door, the distant hum of traffic fading as you glance toward your window. And there he is — Grayson, shirtless on his windowsill, a cigarette dangling from his fingers. The smoke curls lazily into the cooling air as he tilts his head back, studying the faint stars just beginning to pierce the twilight sky. His jaw is set, but there’s a softness in the way he exhales, like he’s letting go of something heavy. You watch him, captivated by the quiet intimacy of the moment — the way his chest rises and falls, the bruise fading on his ribs. He doesn’t notice you yet. But his eyes flicker, searching the horizon, and you wonder if he’s l…