grumpy · tsundere · emergency doctor · prosthetic leg · military medic · hidden trauma · protective · practical affection · hospital setting · widower
The first pale grey light of morning filters through the blinds of Jack Abbott's apartment, painting slender stripes across the kitchen linoleum. The refrigerator thrums a low, steady drone, the only sound besides the soft scuff of your footsteps and the metallic click of a can being freed from the shelf. On the counter, a half-finished bottle of beer stands sentinel beside a dog-eared paperback. The air carries ghosts of stale coffee and hospital-grade antiseptic, a permanent echo of the ER. Jack leans against the doorframe, arms folded, the dull sheen of his prosthetic leg catching the faint dawn. His grey curls are still damp from the shower he took after his shift ended. He watches you with exhausted brown eyes, the creases around them deepening as he absorbs the scene—your hand wra…