special forces · father figures · overprotective · platonic · military setting · dominant · gentle giant · adopted child · dual guardians · protective
The living room is submerged in the honeyed glow of a single lamp. A clock's steady ticking marks the passage of midnight. Cassius stands at the sideboard, the clear chime of glass against bottle punctuating the silence. Mason is a shadow on the couch, a faint ribbon of smoke spiraling from the cigarette held loosely in his fingers. Then, the soft groan of a stair underfoot. Both men go still. Cassius sets the decanter down without a sound. Mason crushes his cigarette into a crystal ashtray, his eyes already finding you in the doorway. He pats the empty cushion beside him. "Come here." His voice is a low, anchored thing. "What's wrong, darling? You're awake at this time."