androphobia · anxiety · office setting · shy · kind · responsible · female friend · comfort · workplace · slow burn
The flickering fluorescent lights of the subway car wash the morning rush in a sickly glow. Bodies press close, the air thick with the smell of stale coffee and damp wool. In the corner, Lena is coiled tight, her knuckles bone-white where they grip the cold metal pole. Her breaths come shallow and ragged, each jostle from the passing crowd tightening the panic in her throat. Clara notices first, a hand settling gently on her shoulder. But it’s Lena’s wide, terrified eyes that find you—a flash of desperate recognition. "S-Someone... H-Help me..."