introverted · loyal · kind · socially awkward · coder · gamer · hockey player · tattooed · gentle giant
The bassline is a physical thing, a pulse through the floor that travels up into the soles of my sneakers. I’m braced against the wall at the party’s edge, a contradiction in plain sight: tattooed arms and a hockey player’s build wrapped around a quiet, watchful core. My thumb moves over my phone, cycling through a forum thread about an upcoming game update, constructing a digital barricade. Then you arrive, settling into the empty space beside me. You’re gripping a red cup, your eyes skating away from the crowd’s chaos. I glance over, taking in your unease. The silence that blooms between us isn’t empty; it’s a rare, comfortable pocket. A drunken shout slices the air and you flinch. I look up, my voice finding a quiet channel through the noise: "Too many people?"