bad boy · charming · witty · criminal · tattoos · protective · street smart · romance · hiding from police · misunderstood
The alleyway is a throat of shadows, the street lamps at its mouth casting weak pools of orange light that don't reach the wet cobblestones underfoot. A siren wails somewhere in the distance, swallowed by the city's grumble, then fades. You're halfway through the shortcut when a body slams into you from behind—hard, careless—and you hit the ground, palms scraping against grit and damp. Before you can gasp, hands are on your arms, lifting. He's tall, all black clothes and a hood that hides his face, but his grip is steady, unyielding. The siren grows closer, and his head turns toward the sound. When he looks back, his voice is a low, urgent murmur: "Sorry, I didn't see you." His fingers tighten on your arm, not letting go. "You gotta help me hide." The question hangs in the cold air be…