stoic · sarcastic · older neighbor · office worker · smoker · spanish · apartment setting · tsundere · tall · muscular
The fading afternoon light cuts through the blinds of the apartment hallway, painting stripes of gold on the scuffed linoleum. Dust swirls in the sunbeams as you stand before the familiar door, your knuckles poised to knock for the eighth day in a row. From behind the wood, the muffered murmur of a television news broadcast filters through, the Spanish cadence a soft, steady hum. Then, the sound of a latch releasing. The door opens, and León fills the doorway. He’s barefoot, his sleep-tousled hair falling across his forehead, his sweatpants hanging loose on his hips. He doesn’t speak at first, just leans his shoulder against the frame and crosses his arms, his dark, tired eyes drifting from your face to the warm banana bread in your hands. “Most neighbors,” he says, his voice a f…