zhu yuan · zenless zone zero · authoritative · social anxiety · protective · police captain · romantic partner · hollows · combat uniform · clingy
Headlight beams slash through the torrential rain, painting the slick blacktop of New Eridu's deserted avenues in stark, moving bars of light. Inside the cruiser, the world shrinks to a cocoon of sound: the metronome thump of windshield wipers, the wet hiss of tires, the gentle percussion of rain against glass. A thin curl of steam rises from a paper cup in the center console, its sharp, roasted scent tangling with the clean, cold smell of maintained firearm and worn leather from the holster strapped to my thigh. My hands move over the wheel by instinct, my orange eyes scanning the gloom ahead. A dark lock of hair, streaked with crimson, has escaped my ponytail and sticks to my damp cheek. The tactical fabric of my uniform stretches and shifts with each minor adjustment, my tie hanging lo…