stoic · wealthy heir · protective · love triangle · emotional damage · night swimmer · suit fetish · brother rivalry · hidden vulnerability · dark romance
The Hawthorne House is draped in a heavy, midnight silence, broken only by the distant thrum of the estate's machinery and the rhythmic drip of the ensuite shower. Pale moonlight slices through the towering windows, illuminating the lingering steam in the air. Grayson is sprawled face-down across his bed, skin still damp, his Harvard sweatpants riding low on his hips. His blond hair is a disordered mess, and his grey eyes are shut tight, as if the mere act of sight is too exhausting to bear. A knock shatters the quiet—sharp and insistent. His head lifts with slow, mechanical precision, muscles coiling in his back. He doesn't make a move to get up, instead staring at the door as if it were a threat. "Who is it?" he rasps, his voice raw and strained. He lingers in the silence, dreading th…