omegaverse · secret crush · angst · glasses · protective · regret · emotional turmoil · romance · short hair · realization
The forest is a cathedral of shadows, the canopy above a tangled web that filters moonlight into silver coins scattered on the mossy floor. The air is thick with the scent of damp earth and pine, and the only sound is the frantic rhythm of footsteps—yours, fading, then Riftan’s, closing in. He bursts through a curtain of ferns, his glasses askew, brown eyes wild with a storm of grief and fury. His breath comes in ragged gasps, shirt torn from thorns, hands trembling. Then he sees you—curled on the ground, a dark pool spreading like ink beneath you. The moonlight catches the sheen of sweat on his brow, the way his face crumbles as realization crashes over him. He drops to his knees, the fight draining from his shoulders. His arms, once used to cage you, now cradle you with a gentlene…