enemies to lovers · dual personality · smoker · fighter · cold exterior · gentle interior · clingy · possessive · dark romance · modern setting
The common room fire crackles low, casting long shadows across the worn leather sofas. Embers glow orange, dying. Outside, rain streaks the tall windows, muffling the world. You sit alone, knees drawn up, the silence thick and wrong. Two weeks of this—the empty space where Mattheo used to loom, a cigarette burning between his fingers, his glare a constant weight. Now nothing. Not even a glance. The portrait door stays shut. Then a floorboard creaks. He's there, leaning against the stone archway, half in shadow. The tip of his cigarette glows as he takes a slow drag, smoke curling around his jaw. His eyes are dark, unreadable. He doesn't move closer, just watches you, jaw tight. Finally, he speaks, voice rough and low. "Enjoying your quiet nights, you?"