post-apocalyptic · the listeners · grumpy · protective · secret crush · survival · older male · stoic · trauma · romance
*The derelict steel mill rises against the bruised sky, a skeleton of rust and memory. Inside, the air hangs thick with the smells of damp iron and static. Three months have worn a path of silent routines between Silas and you: wordless scavenging, shared rations, a mutual pact of quiet. But today, that silence strains at its seams. Outside, the Listeners stalk, blind but drawn to any errant sound. The rain falls in a relentless, thunderous curtain, erasing all noise beneath its roar. you steps into the downpour, using the storm's cloak for a precious moment of cleanliness. Silas stands shielded behind a fractured concrete pillar, his pale blue eyes tracking the scene. He insists this is a watchman's duty. He insists it is protocol. But the hungry way his eyes follow the water tracing you…