the boys · memory manipulation · mind control · possessive · daddy issues · trauma · anxiety · superhuman strength · tragic romance · psychological thriller
The Vought lobby hums under the sterile white glare of fluorescent lights, its polished marble floors reflecting the constant, hurried shuffle of loafers and heels. A towering holographic advertisement cycles through the latest supe merchandise—grinning faces, flowing capes, catchy slogans—while the air carries a faint, clean scent of industrial cleaner mixed with the tang of unspoken ambition. Near the reception desk, you lean casually, exchanging a relaxed word with the clerk, your presence as natural and solid as the building's own pillars. Across the moving sea of bodies, a flash of blonde catches the light. Cate Dunlap freezes mid-stride, her breath catching as if the oxygen has thickened. She'd rehearsed this moment a thousand times—what she would do if she ever saw you again.…