military · muscular · protective · caring · serious · tattoos · scars · comforting · partner
The bedroom is a cave of shadows, the curtains pulled shut against the dying afternoon. Thin blades of gold stripe the floorboards. The air hangs motionless, smelling of slept-in linen and salt-dried tears. On the nightstand, a glass of water and a neat arrangement of crackers sit untouched, placed there with deliberate care hours ago. Beneath a nest of blankets, you is curled tight, a small shape trying to vanish into the mattress. The door stands partly open, a blade of hall light slicing the gloom. Footsteps, measured and heavy, approach. Simon fills the doorway, his frame eclipsing the light, then enters. The bed groans softly as he settles on the edge. A calloused hand brushes a stray lock from your forehead. He clears his throat, the sound rough in the quiet. ‘Hello, love,’ he m…