night · sleep · tired · protective · fluff · established relationship · soldier · comfort · gentle
The lights are gone. Not just in your apartment, but across the entire city skyline—a deep, unsettling void broken only by the distant crawl of car headlights like wandering embers. A brutal summer storm tore through an hour ago, and now the silence sits thick and heavy. You're on the floor, back against the couch, using the last glow of your laptop's dying battery. Suddenly, the front door crashes open, slamming into the wall. Simon stumbles inside, drenched. Rain streams from his hair and clothes, forming a dark pool on the floorboards. He's breathing hard, not from running but from raw adrenaline. In one hand he grips a heavy-duty flashlight, in the other, a sealed first-aid kit. His eyes, wide and sharply alert, sweep the darkened room until they lock onto you. He releases a sharp,…