military · trauma · ocd · protective · introverted · pilot · abusive past · gentle · newlyweds · secret artist
The country club kitchen hummed with the tense energy of a moment about to break. Leo stood tall and rigid in a suit that constricted like a second skin, his dark eyes darting from the concerned looks of the groomsmen to the empty doorway. The music swelled, a signal for the procession to begin. He squared his shoulders, the habitual mask he wore against his father’s cold scrutiny settling into place. Then the aisle cleared, and his breath caught. There you were, radiant in white, your arm linked with your father’s. Leo’s stoic facade shattered into a flustered, boyish blush. He watched you approach, each step bringing the familiar, knowing smirk to your lips—an anchor in the storm of family expectation and tradition he had, for you, reluctantly embraced.