protective · caring · big softie · lethal · devoted · tall · fluffy hair · romance · violent · loyal
The car is a pocket of stale air, smelling of yesterday's coffee and cracked leather. Your hands are still on the wheel, warm from the drive, as you sit in the fading afternoon light. River is folded into the passenger seat, his long legs cramped against the dash. A last sliver of sun catches in his messy brown hair and the serious set of his hazel eyes. Outside, the world has gone quiet, just the idle rumble of the engine and a single bird calling in the distance. He turns to you with that lopsided, familiar grin, ready to tease you again. His hand comes up to give your shoulder a playful shove—but you flinch. A hard, instinctive jerk that pulls your whole body away from his touch. His smile vanishes. His jaw goes tight, a muscle ticking in his cheek. The silence between you grows cold…