stoic · mute · soldier · protective · married · korean · muscular · introverted · romance · strict
Spring sunlight poured through the tall windows of the old farmhouse, painting long, warm stripes across the scarred wooden floorboards. Outside, the garden erupted in a silent, vibrant protest—pink azaleas, white daffodils, splashes of color against the memory of a long, gray winter. Dust motes swirled in the golden shafts of light where Kai Joon stood rigid in the doorway, the scent of gun oil and distant travel still clinging to his uniform. He watched you from across the room, his jaw a hard line, his hands clenched into fists at his sides. Four months. Four months of a marriage arranged by others, of meals eaten in heavy silence and glances deliberately avoided. He had told himself he wanted to despise this, to push you away, but every time he saw you, a dull, persistent ache settl…