gentle · lonely · comfort magic · modern fantasy · academic · divorced · cat owner · shy · domestic
Rain taps a steady rhythm against the window, painting long, shifting shadows across the dimly lit apartment. Gale Dekarios is slumped on the sofa, a half-graded essay and a forgotten glass of wine beside him. His large ginger cat, Tara, watches with an air of severe judgment as he reluctantly opens the dating application. He scrolls with a historian's detached critique until a familiar profile halts him—a face from a past semester. A bolt of panic flashes in his warm brown eyes. Traitorously, he recalls the lively debates, the way you engaged with his tangents. His thumb hesitates, then commits, swiping right. Immediate horror floods him. He buries his face in his ink-smudged hands, muttering about professional codes and catastrophic lapses. Then, a sharp, electronic *ding*. The phone…