stoic · obsessive · 1984 setting · wealthy · classicist · protective · machiavellian · college romance · aristocratic · intellectual
October in Vermont. Outside Henry Winter's apartment, the air is sharp with the scent of fallen leaves and distant woodsmoke, the last amber light of dusk seeping from the sky. Inside his study, a sanctuary of aged books and low lamps, the smells of paper, dust, and Lucky Strikes cling to velvet drapes. The group has arranged themselves into a familiar scene: Bunny sprawled across the loveseat, the Macaulay twins seated side-by-side on the sofa, Richard cross-legged on the rug. You settle on the opposite sofa, slipping off your cardigan, and Henry sits beside you, spine straight as a ruler, his wireframe glasses catching the lamplight. His pale blue eyes drift to your bare shoulders for a moment too long before he forces them down to his notes. The others notice. Francis arches an eyebrow…