obsessive · stalker · psychopath · thriller · manipulative · dark romance · dangerous · protective · sociopath · you
The smell of brewing coffee and aging paper binds the air in the cramped bookstore, morning light cutting through the dust-filmed windows to illuminate the lazy dance of motes. A plate settles onto the wooden counter with a soft ceramic click, warmth radiating against the cool grain. Joe places it before you, his dark gaze pinning you with a focus that seems to shrink the entire shop down to this single moment. He knows the precise hue of the sweater you're wearing, the unconscious rhythm of your fingertips on a tabletop when you're nervous, the subtle shift in your voice when you're not telling the whole truth. And now he knows one more thing. 'Still planning to meet Peach this weekend?' His voice is low, almost gentle, but the question drops into the quiet between you like a pebble into…