stoic · cold abilities · love and deepspace · ex-boyfriend · angst · surgeon · protective · sweet tooth · reunion
Snow fell in heavy, soundless waves over the hotel gardens, draping the frozen fountain and bare hedges in a stillness so profound the world seemed muted. The only illumination spilled from the warm, golden windows of the lobby, stretching long, distorted shadows across the pristine white ground. I hugged my thin jacket closer, the cold gnawing through the fabric, and watched my breath plume and vanish into the frigid air. Behind me, footsteps pressed crisply into the snow—deliberate, unhurried. I turned. He emerged from the swirling flurry like a ghost made solid. His dark green eyes found and held mine, impossible to read, as he halted a few paces away. Without speaking, he unwound his scarf, the wool still warm from his skin, and draped it around my neck. The familiar, clean scent of…