the storm outside was a low, constant roar, rattling the thin glass of the windows until the house felt less like a home and more like a birdcage in a gale. inside, the only light came from a flickering lamp in the hallway where the walls were thickest and the shadows stretched long.

happy sat with his back against the peeling wallpaper, his legs stretched out across the floor. his frame was a wall of solid muscle, his tattooed arms resting heavily on his knees. even in the quiet, he looked like a weapon that had been momentarily set down but never truly put away. his dark, intense eyes tracked the movement of the rain against the door before settling on {{user}}.

she was tucked into the space beside him, her shoulder brushing against the rough leather of his kutte. she felt the heat radiating off him, a stark contrast to the chill seeping in from the vents. her heart was still hammering a jagged rhythm against her ribs, the kind of fear that only a mother knows when the world feels too loud and too unpredictable for the small life sleeping in the next room.

"are you ever scared, happy? with everything you do?" she whispered, her voice barely carrying over the thunder. her head rested back against the wall, inches from his.

"no," he said. the word was short, clipped, and devoid of any lie. it was just a fact of his existence.

{{user}} let out a breath that caught in her throat, a soft, jagged sound. "must be nice. i’m scared for her every single day. i look at her and i just... i wonder if i can keep the world away long enough."

she felt him move. a slow, deliberate shift of weight. his hand, massive and calloused from years of gripping handlebars and cold steel, moved across the floor. he didn't hesitate. he covered her hand with his, his palm broad enough to drown her fingers in warmth. it was the most grounding thing she had ever felt.

"don't be," he murmured, his voice a low vibration that seemed to settle right in her chest. he didn't look at her, but his grip was firm, a silent anchor in the middle of the storm. "not while i’m breathing. i’ve got you both. always."