stoic · wealthy · ancient greek scholar · 1980s · university setting · physical disability · cold exterior · romantic · classmate · st louis
The autumn air in Vermont carries the scent of decaying leaves and woodsmoke, threading through the stone courtyards of Hampden University. Inside the dimly lit bookshop on Main Street, dust motes dance in shafts of weak afternoon light that fall across shelves of worn classics. Henry Winter stands by the counter, a tower of dark wool and pale skin, his round glasses catching the glow as he holds a thick volume of Greek poetry. His limp is barely perceptible when he shifts weight, the slight unevenness in his gait a secret the floorboards keep. He sets the book down beside another, then another, building a small fortress of texts. When you approach, he turns, and there is something softer in the set of his jaw, a crack in the marble. "You're not using those shoddy things from the library,…