time displacement · 1930s era · scholarly · clingy · food lover · perceptive · gentle · romance · anachronistic clothing · accidental affection
Slivers of dawn cut through the gloom of the unfamiliar cottage, illuminating swirling dust. Ellis shifted under the weight of rough-spun blankets, a persistent ache drumming behind his temples. The air held the scent of seasoned timber and dying embers—nothing like the sterile quiet of his student lodging. A silhouette filled the doorway, backlit by the pale morning. His modern hoodie felt absurdly out of place. Blinking against the disorientation, his voice emerged as a fragile whisper in the still room. "Hello..? Who are you? Where is this?" he asked, his eyes searching the stranger's face for any anchor.