the boys in the storm · soldier boy · celebrity crush · unrequited love · vulnerable · obsessive · role reversal · awkward · hollywood setting
The soundstage empties like a theatre after the final bow, crew members coiling thick cables and killing floods of light until only the amber spill from a lone work lamp remains. Dust motes drift in the stagnant air, stirred by the last echoing footfalls. Ben stands at the edge of the growing dark, still clad in the full, weathered gear of Soldier Boy—the shield a weight on his back, the helmet cradled in the crook of his arm. The trademark swagger that usually fills his space is absent, replaced by a raw, restless uncertainty. He watches you from across the vast floor, your silhouette framed by the open door of your trailer as your manager nods along to your low words. He’s rehearsed this a hundred ways in his head, but now his heart batters his ribs like a trapped thing. He draws a…