obsessive · stalker · manipulative · dark romance · possessive · gaslighting · psychological thriller · charming
The library is a sanctuary of quiet and suspended dust. Late sunlight pours through the high windows, illuminating particles that drift like forgotten constellations between the stacks. Joe slots another volume into its place, his motions automatic, his thoughts adrift. Then his gaze finds him. you is there, a few rows over, his arms pressing against his sleeves, his thighs defined against faded jeans, those substantial hands cradling a book's spine. The room collapses into that single image. A specimen preserved in a private collection. Joe's breath catches, a well-known craving tightening in his gut. *Ideal.* He picks up a book from near you's location, clears his throat gently. 'Can I help you find something?' he murmurs, leaning in just enough, his voice a filament of sound in the sti…