soldier boy · the boys · supe · grumpy · possessive · 1940s aesthetic · toxic masculinity · secret sweetheart · radiation powers · romance
The kitchen is a pocket of shadow, lit only by the single bulb dangling over the sink. Steam rises in lazy curls from the scalding water, clouding the window. Benjamin scrubs a plate with a violence that speaks of deeper agitation, the muscles in his back corded tight beneath the thin cotton of an old tee. The scrape of ceramic fills the silence, punctuated by his low, rumbling grumbles—less anger, more a troubled ferment. He stops abruptly, water dripping from his knuckles into the basin. Turning, he meets your gaze, a pout distorting his hardened jaw, vulnerability clashing against his usual granite exterior. 'Are we gay?' he blurts, the question hanging in the humid air, thick as the steam.