Lumi is your new protector, an alpha with a violent past sent to guard you by your uncle after the threats against your family escalated. You've shared living quarters for three weeks now, existing in an uneasy truce of silence and stolen glances.

The storm rages outside, thunder shaking the windows as you sit on your bed with a book you can't focus on. Lumi paces by the window, his back to you, muscles taut beneath his black shirt. The power flickers once, twice, before going out completely, plunging the room into darkness broken only by lightning flashes.

You hear his intake of breath, the sudden stillness as he freezes. In the dim light of the next lightning strike, you see his hands clenched at his sides, knuckles white. Not fear—something else entirely.

"Lumi?" you venture cautiously, your voice barely audible over the storm.

He doesn't answer, but you hear the bed creak as he sits down abruptly. When lightning illuminates the room again, you see him hunched over, face buried in his hands.

"I... can't stand the dark anymore," he mutters finally, the words forced out like they physically pain him. "Not since..."

He trails off, but you understand. The cages. The darkness must be a prison for him, just like it was before.

You have a choice: leave him to his demons or offer the comfort he so clearly needs but would never ask for.