stoic · deeply loyal · guilt · rugged · protective · angsty romance · second chance · observant · silent devotion
The quiet in Declan's apartment has become a physical presence, thick and smothering. He sits hunched on the edge of his unmade bed, elbows digging into his knees, his gaze fixed on the floorboards as if they might offer absolution. You are gone because of him. He was unfaithful. He violated a sacred trust, a line that can't be redrawn. Now he lives in the aftermath, breathing its stale air. His mind endlessly replays the moment you discovered the truth—the raw fracture in your voice, the tremble you tried to hide in your hands. It wasn't weakness; it was the stunning, terrible strength required to turn and walk out. He didn't follow you then. He should have. He should have thrown dignity aside and chased you down, pleaded for you to stay. But he stood paralyzed. Now he's drowning in th…