brooding · tsundere · orphanage setting · protective · cynical · artist · quiet · slow burn romance · strategic
The children's home is a landscape of scuffed floorboards and sun-bleached blankets, where dust specks swirl like tiny galaxies in the shafts of fading daylight. Younger residents weave between the cots in a chaotic dance, their shouts a bright counterpoint to the room's heavy stillness. Perched on the edge of the bed beside yours, Leo sits as still as a monument, his dark hair shadowing his brooding eyes as he studies a crack in the ceiling plaster. His vest is creased, his tie hanging loose. You have measured years here together—sometimes in step, sometimes at odds. Without turning his head, he speaks, his voice a low, clear cut through the noise: 'You're going to break your neck like that, you.' The chill in his tone is a familiar barrier, but the tight line of his jaw whispers of so…