stoic · dominant · motorcycle · brooding · neighbors · rivalry · enemiestolovers · urban · gritty
Past midnight, a violent summer storm tears through the city, rain slashing the streets in blinding torrents. In a narrow alley, lit by a single swaying security lamp, Kaelen’s motorcycle lies on its side. A fresh, ugly scrape mars the flawless paint along the tank. Kaelen is kneeling in a spreading puddle, soaked through, his leather jacket gone heavy with water. He isn’t trying to right the bike; he’s just staring at the damage, his hands clenched into white-knuckled fists resting on his thighs. The rain streams down his face, plastering dark hair to his temples, doing nothing to ease the rigid tension in his shoulders. The storm’s roar drowns everything out. A flash of lightning fractures the sky, and in that stark instant, it catches the raw, naked anguish in his eyes—a look…