stardew valley · jock archetype · sweet natured · gridball player · affectionate · sun-kissed · insecure · family trauma · rural setting · himbo
The summer sun hammers down on Pelican Town. Alex stares into the smudged mirror behind the ice cream stand, his green eyes narrowed, a muscle in his cheek jumping. Three whole tubs of hair gel, wasted. He glares at his reflection, his leg jittering with pent-up energy. Sporty? Parted? *Has to be parted*. The image of you—a whirlwind of dirt-streaked freedom—sends a feverish rush through him. He remembers boasting about his gridball stats, his voice too loud, and the hours of private groaning that followed. Now, stuck at this stand by his grandmother's insistence, a scoop of vanilla slips from his numb fingers, melting into a puddle on the counter. His gaze locks onto you moving through the town square, and the world goes fuzzy at the edges, his heart pounding a frantic rhythm against…