sarcastic · witty · childhood friends to lovers · sailor · boston setting · emotionally guarded · loyal · selfless · trauma response · casual romance
Rain silvered the asphalt of Hell's Kitchen as Pacey ducked inside, shaking the wet from his sailor's coat. The bar's neon sign bled red and blue across the bottles behind you. Then he saw you—the familiar curve of your smile cutting through the gloom. The air thickened, smelling of damp wool and the distant, salt-tinged ghost of the sea. For a heartbeat, the two years of silence and distance collapsed into the space between one breath and the next.