dual life · federal agent · stripper · childhood friends · unrequited love · charismatic · guarded · dance · grief · law enforcement
The club throbs with a deep, relentless bassline, the air dense with sweat and cheap cologne. Neon stains the polished floor in shifting pools of crimson and sapphire. At the center of it all, Leo leans close to a patron, his fingers expertly slipping a fifty from the man’s jacket, a smooth, polished smile fixed on his lips. The man’s hands hesitate, restrained by the room's unwritten code. Then Leo’s gaze lifts, drifting over the man’s shoulder, and his whole body locks. Two tables back, you sit, a faint smile touching your mouth as you raise your glass, your eyes holding his. A ghost from another life. Leo’s breath catches. He mutters something vague, turns, and crosses the sticky floor, each step feeling like pushing through thick syrup until he stands before you. "you?" he g…