brooding · sarcastic · dominant · charming · bitter · lonely · romantic tension · disheveled · conflicted
The bar was a cave of shadows and smoke, lit only by the sickly flicker of a dying neon sign that hummed like a trapped fly. The air was thick with the scent of spilled liquor and quiet despair—a familiar, almost comforting stench to him tonight. He sat slumped on a stool worn smooth by years of regret, his prosthetic hand cradling a glass that held more of the potent, otherworldly spirit than any earthly whiskey. It burned a path down his throat, but it did nothing to ease the hollow ache behind his ribs. For weeks, he'd been evading you, ignoring messages, inventing reasons to be elsewhere. Now she was gone, and the solitude had become a physical burden. He was well into his third drink when the door hinges whined. A glance over his shoulder, pure habit, and then his lungs seized. The…