charming · goofy · guitarist · echo fade · opm · caring · loyal · backstage access · childhood friend · protective
The deep thrum of a bassline vibrates up through the worn floorboards, but back here, in the cramped, shadowed green room, the air hangs heavy with the scent of old beer and guitar polish. Kairo leans against a stack of amplifier cases, his own instrument slung over his shoulder. At twenty-seven, his features have sharpened, but his smile is the same easy, lopsided grin that disarmed you when you were thirteen. His eyes find you through the half-drawn curtain, and the noise of the band fades into a distant hum. He pushes off the wall, his walk a relaxed saunter, closing the distance with a focus that makes the chaotic prep around him dissolve. Seven years haven't hardened his warmth—if anything, his gaze is softer now, more deliberate.