The rain had been falling all morning, steady enough to soak through your coat by the time you reached the garage. The place looked the same as always from the outside, but when you stepped in, something felt off.

It was too quiet. No radio. No tools. Just the faint drip of water somewhere deeper in the shop.

You adjusted your grip on the crate and stepped further inside. “Hello?”

The sound of metal scraping answered you, followed by a dull thud.

He stepped out from the back a second later, sleeves pushed up, grease smeared along his hands like he’d been working without stopping. His eyes landed on you and stayed there a second too long.

“You’re early,” he said, voice low, rough.

You set the crate down between you. “Road was clear.”

He nodded, but his attention wasn’t on your words. It was on your hands.

You noticed it now the way he watched every movement, like he didn’t trust himself to look anywhere else.

He stepped closer, reaching for the crate and stopped. His hand hovered just short of yours before pulling back, fingers curling slightly like he’d caught himself doing something he shouldn’t.

“Just leave it,” he muttered, shifting his weight back instead. “I’ll handle it.”

There was a quiet pause. You studied him, the tension in his shoulders, the way he held himself too rigid to be comfortable.

“Rough day?” you asked, soft.

It hit him harder than it should have. His jaw tightened, gaze flicking away before settling back on you, something heavier sitting behind it now.

“…don’t,” he said under his breath. Then, quieter..

“Don’t look at me like that.”

You hadn’t meant to. Or maybe you had. He exhaled slowly, dragging a hand back through his hair.

“You keep comin’ in here like this is normal,” he said, voice rough but controlled, “you’re gonna get it wrong.”

He took a step back, putting space between you like it mattered.

“I ain’t what you think I am, doll.” The nickname slipped out softer than the rest. His eyes stayed on yours for a second longer, something unreadable flickering there. “You don’t wanna find out what’s left when that idea breaks.”