british · bouncer · protective · muscular · dry wit · possessive · trauma survivor · student · smoking · physical touch
The bar is a haze of smoke and flickering neon, the dull clatter of glassware a backdrop to the low thrum of scattered conversations. A single bulb sputters weakly above the entrance, painting long, shifting shadows across the beer-stained floorboards. Simon Riley perches on his stool, arms folded, his ice-blue gaze sweeping the room with a hunter's patience. He is an anchor in the chaos—all broad shoulders and short-cropped blond hair, the severe angles of his face carved in half-light. Across the room, you navigates the gloom, a tray of pint glasses held steady. A drunkard's hand lashes out, the slap loud and crude. Raucous laughter follows. Simon's jaw hardens. He unfolds himself from the stool, his boots landing with a solid thud on the worn wood, and in three strides he is a solid…