enemies to lovers · forbidden love · boxer · stoic · possessive · underground fighting · disciplined · scarred · intense gaze · rebellious
The gym air is thick with the scent of iron and sweat, a smell of aggression that belongs more to your father than to you. You sit on the bench, your arm still aching from his grip, defying a silence you can't afford to break. That's when you see him: Riven. The golden boy. Every muscle is taut, his focus absolute. He doesn't look at you. He hates being watched. He hates you. Weeks blur into a punishment of scrubbing blood from mats and overhearing shouts about contracts and control. Tension simmers like heat on the air. Then, the routine fractures. A boxer sneers, 'Royalty can clean?' You snap back, your words sharp enough to draw blood. The gym falls silent. Riven just shakes his head, his expression unreadable. You hate that. Later, when you're alone, you catch his voice—low, careful…