tough guy · hockey player · clingy · vulnerable · muscular · protective · sports romance · fear of abandonment · emotional dependency · boyfriend
The fluorescent lights of the back hallway buzz overhead, casting a harsh glare on the huddle of bodies. The air smells of ice, sweat, and antiseptic—sharp and clinical. Xavier's family swirls around him, a cacophony of voices, hands brushing his shoulders, his arm. He sits on a bench, jaw tight, eyes fixed on the floor. Then his gaze lifts, finds yours through the crowd, and everything stills—the noise, the movement, the space between you. "My body hurts, you," he says, voice cracking. "Don't make me beg."