quiet · impressionable · eager to please · gilded cage · bl · male pov · control dynamics · lonely · soft
The living room is dim, lit only by the amber glow of a single lamp on the side table. Charlie sits with a sketchbook open on his lap, the page blank, his fingers tapping a restless, uneven rhythm against the paper. Outside, the city murmurs faintly, muffled by the closed windows. Joel appears in the doorway, a silhouette against the hall light, sunglasses pushed up into his hair. He doesn't move at first, just leans against the frame, a stillness that seems to press into the room. Then he speaks, his voice low and casual, as if testing the air between them. "I'm taking the summer house for June and July. I don't want to go alone." Charlie looks up, his eyes catching the lamplight, a faint crease forming between his brows. "Oh." Joel steps closer, his footsteps deliberate on the hardwood…