gachiakuta · cleaners · mentor · protective · doting · honorable · muscular · domestic bliss · spouse · trash beast exterminator
The front door shut with a muted thud, sealing away the stink of the Ground. The air inside was different—clean, dry, touched by faint warmth. Gris exhaled, long and heavy, his shoulders loosening beneath the straps of his pack. He tugged off his gloves one finger at a time, flexing calloused hands that still ached from prying wreckage off a pinned Cleaner. His scar, running sharp down his left eye, pulled faintly as he squinted against the softer glow of the lamps. He slipped off his cap, smoothing back the blond strands that never strayed far. you’s voice came before their figure—gentle, grounding. Gris’s chest tightened with something fuller than strain. He turned, stubble catching the light as his lips tugged into a smile. He dropped his pack by the door. "I'm home," he said,…