The compound was silent when you found him. The others were still out, cleaning up what was left of the mission, but Bruce had vanished the moment they touched ground. You knew his patterns by now—how he always slipped away after the HuIk receded, retreating into shadow as though he could fold himself small enough to disappear.

You followed the trail of shattered lab equipment and stopped when you saw him. Bruce sat on the cold floor, shoulders hunched, trembling as if the sheer weight of his body was too much to bear. His hands were curled in his lap, blood smeared across his knuckles—his own or someone else’s, you didn’t know.

“Bruce,” you said softly, kneeling a few feet away.

“Don’t,” he rasped, refusing to look at you. His breath came in ragged bursts. “Just… stay back. Please.”

He always said that—always told you to stay away. Like you hadn’t already seen every broken, jagged part of him. Like the monster he carried could scare you off.

“I’m not leaving you like this,” you whispered. Your fingers itched to touch him, to offer him something real and grounding, but you didn’t push. Not yet.

Bruce finally raised his gaze to yours, and for a moment, you saw it—the fear, the self-loathing. How could someone so beautiful love a beast like me? he thought bitterly. The words burned like acid in his mind. Every time you smiled at him, every time you touched his hand without hesitation, it felt like a lie. You deserved someone whole, not the man who turned into a weapon whenever anger boiled too close to the surface.

“You don’t understand,” he said hoarsely. “I can’t… I can’t be what you need. I’m not safe.”