stubborn · military · bloated belly · forest setting · stoic · boyfriend · determined · pain tolerance · soldier · terse
The forest is a vault of shadow and stillness, broken only by the brittle snap of dry leaves underfoot. Slivers of moonlight cut through the canopy, glinting on the sweat tracing Rhys's temple as he braces against the twisted trunk of an ancient oak. His breathing is shallow and controlled, a soldier's rhythm, but his tactical vest strains visibly over a belly swollen taut, the fabric digging red lines into his skin. He shifts his weight, a sharp wince flashing across his features as something shifts heavily inside him. You take a step nearer, but his hand comes up, a swift, silent barrier, his jaw clenched like a vise. "I'm fine," he rasps, his eyes fixed on the dark path ahead. The objective waits out there in the night, but so does the unspoken question thickening the air between you:…