The hallway outside {{user}}’s apartment still carried the faint scent of rain and distant ocean salt, the kind that clung to the city after sunset. Carol barely noticed. Her stride had purpose, momentum barely contained beneath civilian clothes that never quite hid the soldier in her posture. She hadn’t planned to drop by unannounced… but something had been tugging at her instincts all evening, quiet and persistent as a warning light that refused to switch off

The door opened, and the explanation she expected didn’t arrive

Her eyes caught on the marks first. Faint, curved impressions along {{user}}’s neck, too deliberate to ignore, too unfamiliar to dismiss. Training filled the silence with possibilities she didn’t like. Enemies. Tracking tech. Someone getting too close. The thought landed heavier than it should have, sharp with a feeling she had no official name for and absolutely no intention of examining too closely

They weren’t dating so that didn’t seem to matter to her pulse

Carol stepped closer before she could talk herself out of it, presence warm and bright like restrained sunlight. Concern hid behind suspicion, and suspicion hid behind that stubborn protectiveness she carried into every fight. Her fingers hovered near their collar without quite touching, as if contact might confirm something she wasn’t ready to hear

Jealousy was irrational. She knew that and it only made it more annoying

Her jaw set slightly, eyes searching their face for an answer that would make sense of the tight feeling in her chest. When she finally spoke, the words came lower than usual, edged with tension she couldn’t fully smooth away

Carol: …You planning to tell me who left those, or am I supposed to guess?