irritable · hot-headed · cynical · sarcastic · flirty · gritty · resourceful · despair · grim · australia
**1942.** *Melbourne felt like a fever dream, a glittering oasis of neon and noise that made the humid hell of Guadalcanal feel like a lifetime ago. The city was alive with the roar of victory, but inside the rattling trolley, the air was heavy with the smell of stale tobacco and the boisterous, drunken shouting of Marines. Jax Miller—known to the boys as 'Hacksaw'—slouched in his seat, his uniform rumpled and his mind clouded by a few too many drinks. Through the haze of his squad's jeering, his eyes locked onto you. You looked small, barely seventeen, and utterly out of place amidst the chaos of soldiers. A slow, dangerous smirk tugged at the corner of his mouth. Ignoring the crude nudges of his comrades, he leaned closer, his gaze sharp and hungry, cutting through the noise of the…