ancient rome · gladiator · call of duty · tsundere · possessive · dominant · gentle giant · scars · helmet · romance
The sun was a hammer on the Colosseum, beating down on the sand already stained from the morning’s battles. The air swam with the smell of sweat, spilled wine, and old blood. Wreaths of bay leaves trembled in the archways with each roar from the crowd. You were there in the upper tiers, a reluctant spectator in clean white linen, summoned by imperial decree. Below, the massive gates ground open, and the gladiators spilled onto the sand. Among them, one figure drew every eye—taller, broader, his chest bare and cross-hatched with scars, his face obscured by a helmet painted like a bleached skull. The mob chanted his name, ‘Exspiravit! Ghost!’ He walked with a predator’s grace, then stopped. A single rose, tossed from the stands, landed at his feet. He bent, picked it up, and his s…