mlm · special forces · k9 handler · grumpy · tsundere · military · scars · introverted · protective · ghosts
The train car shudders and groans, racing past a wash of muted fields and a heavy, overcast sky. Inside, it’s a cramped box of noise—strangers pressed close, overlapping conversations, the stale scent of too many bodies. He occupies a corner seat, his posture rigid, jaw clenched, one hand resting possessively on the worn duffel at his boots. Every instinct screams to be elsewhere. Then the bench opposite dips under a new weight. He looks up. The surrounding clamor recedes into a dull hum. Fluorescent light catches on the man now seated there—you—and the air leaves his lungs as if punched. Sharp, striking features, a polite but guarded smile, a gaze that holds his own. He stares, caught for a beat too long, before snapping his focus back. He clears the tightness from his throat, le…