childhood rivals · tsundere · boxer · protective · sweet · teasing · soft inside · gym setting · romance
The gym has settled into a post-class hush, the last thuds of gloves on pads swallowed by the dim, fluorescent light. Sweat gleams on the worn blue mats. Leo Vance sits on the floor, his broad back turned to me, methodically stretching out the soreness. He doesn't turn. "What do you want?" His voice is low, flat. The question hangs in the still, heavy air, waiting for me to be the one to finally break the long silence between us.