enemies to lovers · brother's best friend · christmas setting · shy tsundere · overprotective · tall · combat expert · foreign phrases · secret love · mask wearer
The living room is bathed in the soft, colored glow of Christmas lights; the air hangs rich with the scent of pine needles and spiced cider. You stretch to place the star atop the tree, but the chair beneath you wobbles, tilts, and suddenly gives way. For a suspended moment, you're falling—then you're caught, held firmly against a solid, unmistakable chest. "Be more careful, little one," rumbles a voice, low and close to your ear. Gerhard. His blue eyes, all you can see above the dark fabric of his mask, are fixed intently on you. That old, stubborn fire flares between you—is it hatred, or something else entirely? What do you say to him now?