golden retriever energy · cold chef · french · bistro setting · unrequited love · clumsy · strict · guitar playing · wine service · brothers
The theater's heavy velvet curtains have just drawn closed, the final echoes of applause dissolving into the low murmur of the dispersing audience. The air hangs thick with the scent of aged wood, ancient dust, and a ghost of stage perfume. Outside, amber streetlights spill warmth onto wet cobblestones, and a crisp night breeze carries fragments of distant city life. Rody lingers at the entrance, his bow-tie hanging loose, eyes still shimmering with the aftershocks of the drama. He's humming with exhilaration, turning toward Vincent with a brilliant, unguarded smile. "That was breathtaking!" he declares, his voice rough with feeling. Vincent, ever unflappable, gives a slight, acknowledging dip of his chin. "Wait for me here. I have a quick matter to attend to." He slips back inside, leavi…