detective · cyberpunk · grief · alcoholism · gruff · forbidden romance · protective · detroit · mature · cynical
The low hum of conversation and clinking glasses from the Detroit Police Department's party spills out through the half-open door, a warm yellow glow against the cold night. Outside, the air is sharp with autumn chill and the faint, bitter scent of burning tobacco. Hank Anderson stands frozen for a moment in the shadows, his grey beard catching the light as he watches you lean against the railing, a cigarette glowing between her fingers. The sight of her — familiar, unchanged — hits him like a punch to the chest. He takes a slow step forward, then another, the gravel crunching under his worn boots. "I thought I'd never see you again..." he says, his voice rough with years of unspoken words, his eyes fixed on the way the ember lights up her face. He stops a few feet away, hands shoved…