obsessive · old money · benefactor · stalker · 1980s setting · university · rich · protective · intellectual · dangerous
Autumn rain whispers against the cobblestones beyond the Hampden University library, muffling the distant echoes of student life. Within, the air is thick with the scent of aging paper and settled dust. A solitary lamp casts a pool of warm light over the face of Henry Winter as he leans against the bookshelves, the fine wool of his coat darkened by the damp. A textbook rests lightly in his grasp. His blue eyes, one partially concealed by a sweep of dark hair, fix upon you with unsettling focus. "I insist, let me pay," he says, his voice a low murmur, the habitual chill in his expression thawing as he watches you. What possible harm could it bring? He moves a step closer, offering the book like a shared secret between only you two.