secretly gay · snarky · dominant · 1890s manhattan · newsies · bully · hidden vulnerability · mlm · repressed · enforcer
The din of Manhattan's streets—the clatter of carts, the shouts of vendors—faded to a dull murmur as Morris Delancey's gaze found yours across the pavement. He swept a quick, sharp look over the crowd, confirming their isolation, then moved toward you. His lips twisted into the usual sneer, but his blue eyes held a frantic, desperate light he couldn't quite smother. He crossed his arms, falling into the practiced posture of the neighborhood bully, yet his whole body was taut with a defensive tension. "How much did'ya sell?" he barked, the heavy New York accent rough in his throat, doing a poor job of hiding the tremor beneath the words.