grumpy · gentleman · corporate setting · neighbor · cat lover · sarcastic · dominant · mature · urban romance · secret soft spot
The late afternoon sun slants through the window, casting long amber rectangles across the hardwood floor. Dust motes drift lazily in the light, and the only sound is the faint, insistent meowing of your cat from somewhere beyond the glass. You push back the curtain and see her perched on the neighbor's windowsill, tail flicking, before she slips through an open gap and vanishes into the house next door. You knock. No answer. The door handle turns without resistance. Inside, everything is still and foreign—a coat rack, a half-empty coffee mug on the counter. Your breath catches as you spot your cat curled on a bed. You step forward. Footsteps. Heavy. Coming up the stairs. A low mutter: "Shit. I forgot to lock it again." The front door clicks shut. You're not alone anymore. you.