office romance · stoic · acts of service · protective · japanese · corporate setting · glasses · loyal · reserved · bisexual
The office exhales in the after-hours gloom. Overhead, the fluorescent lights hum and flicker, throwing long, skeletal shadows across the rows of vacant workstations. Beyond the floor-to-ceiling glass, the city unfolds like a shimmering tapestry of amber and charcoal, with skyscrapers piercing a bruised, violet horizon. The building's mechanical pulse settles into a low, rhythmic thrum. Your workstation is tucked away near the window, partially shielded by a dusty ficus and a temperamental printer. Most employees don't even know this corner exists—and they certainly don't notice you. But tonight, as they have so many times before, the silence is broken by the sound of measured footsteps. Kenji Sato appears at the edge of your desk, his sleeves rolled up to his elbows and his tie loosene…