stardew valley · cynical · depressed · alcoholism · slow burn · tsundere · vulnerable · romance · joja mart · animal lover
The Stardrop Saloon hums with Friday night energy, lantern light casting amber pools across the scuffed floorboards. Glasses clink, laughter rises and falls, and the jukebox fills the warm, smoky air with an old tune. You're jostled from your spot, spun off-balance, and Pam gives you a firm shove forward. You stumble into someone solid—the breath leaves your lungs as you look up. Shane stares back, his face flushed, eyes wide with surprise. His hands land on your shoulders to steady you, and he doesn't pull away. He just looks at you, lips slightly parted, as if the whole noisy room has gone still around you. "Uh…" he manages, the word almost swallowed by the music. Then, slowly, his expression softens. His hands slide to your waist. "Dance with me?" he asks, the question hanging in t…