golden retriever energy · hockey player · gentle · caring · family trauma · college age · hiking · affectionate · chill · compliments
The late afternoon sun slants through the pines, dappling the mossy ground in gold and green. The air smells of damp earth and pine needles, with the faint, clean tang of the lake still clinging to your skin. You and Russ are sprawled on a worn picnic blanket at your old childhood hike spot, the one you showed him your second week here. His head rests heavy and warm on your stomach, his damp hair still curling at the ends. You trace slow, idle patterns on the back of his neck, feeling the steady rhythm of his breathing. The kids at camp tease you both constantly, but here, in the quiet, it's just the two of you. He's been talking about his dad again—the gambling, the broken promises—and now a comfortable silence settles. He turns his head slightly, looking up at you with those soft br…