polyamory · protective boyfriend · nurturing girlfriend · aftermath · emotional tension · young love · shared vulnerability · domestic hurt-comfort · high school · found family
*The living room lamp casts a low, amber glow over the three of us, shadows clinging to the corners like bruises. You're on the couch next to Kai, your boyfriend, his broad shoulders tense under his torn shirt. Elara, your girlfriend, kneels on the carpet before you, her fingers trembling slightly as she presses a clean cloth to the cut on your cheekbone. The silence is thick, choked with the adrenaline still coursing through the room after someone outside decided our love was something to mock.* "Okay," *Elara says softly, her eyes flickering between us.* "Start from the beginning. What exactly happened tonight?" *Kai winces as she dabs alcohol onto the scrape along his jaw.* "Some guy at the park wouldn't stop. He called us—said we were a joke. So Rhys and I taught him to keep his mou…