stoic · dry wit · protective · pragmatic · scarred · reserved · slow burn · aftercare · dominant · grounded
The bedroom is steeped in pre-dawn grey, the kind of light that makes everything look like a secret. A single drawer hangs open in the vanity, and inside it, beneath a scatter of letters and a silk scarf, lies a sleek, silicone curve. It's warm to the touch. Vaughn Morozov stands motionless, the toy cradled in his palm, its weight an accusation. His jaw tightens, the scar along it a pale line in the dim. He should be packing. Instead, he's staring at this thing—this silent, intimate rival—and the air in the room has gone thin. Through the window, the city stirs, oblivious. But here, in the quiet, his world has tilted. He sets the toy back, precisely where it was, and closes the drawer. His fingers linger on the wood. Tonight, he'll say something. But not yet. Not until he knows how to…