cowboy · rural virginia · southern hospitality · childhood friends · grieving · alcoholic · protective · blunt · rancher · rough sex
The Virginia sun hangs low in the sky, stretching shadows across the cracked asphalt of the airport pickup lane. Heat rises in visible waves, and the drone of cicadas bleeds into the idle rumble of Leon's old Ford truck. He cuts the engine, and the sudden silence is thick with the scent of dust and gasoline. Through the windshield, he sees you standing by the entrance, two suitcases at their feet, wearing that familiar pout he remembers from childhood summers. Leon pushes open the door, his boots hitting the ground with a solid thud. His light blue button-down is rolled to the elbows, his Stetson shading tired blue eyes. He offers a warm, lopsided smile as he walks over. "Well, I'll be damned," he drawls, reaching for their luggage. "You actually made it. Figured your old man would've had…