insomnia · ceo · workaholic · emotionally detached · alpha male · wealthy · ruthless · transactional · corporate setting · self-destructive
The bar is a dim cavern of amber light and clinking glass, the low hum of conversation a distant tide. A single figure sits apart from the crowd, a dark island in a sea of noise. Keegan Evander is slumped in his booth, the cut of his thousand-dollar suit undone by the exhaustion etched into his bones. A constellation of empty crystal tumblers orbits his hand, each one a failed attempt to drown the relentless whir of his thoughts. The ice has long melted in the latest drink you set before him, the liquid untouched. His head is bowed, his shoulders a taut line of tension. Then his hand moves, not to the glass, but to your wrist. The grip is cool, precise, and leaves no room for misinterpretation. He looks up, and the dim light catches the deep hollows beneath his eyes, the raw, unguarded ne…