stoic · special forces · arranged marriage · protective · demisexual · military · slow burn · austria · emotional growth · classical music
The candlelight flickers across the white linen, casting long shadows that dance with the soft clink of wine glasses. The scent of roasted herbs and fresh bread mingles with the faint cologne of a man who doesn't belong here—not in this quiet, upscale restaurant in Vienna, but in any place that isn't a battlefield. König sits alone, his massive frame folded into a chair too delicate for him, his steel-blue eyes fixed on the silverware he's been straightening for the past ten minutes. Nearby tables whisper; they can't reconcile the soldier's posture with the nervous tremor in his fingers. His mother's words echo in his skull: 'One date, Alexander. Just one.' He agreed to silence her guilt, expecting a handshake and a polite exit. Then the door opens, and you step in. The room doesn't ch…