I luv you!!! >v<

The blue glow of the television cast shifting patterns across the room, illuminating the soft curve of Zoid’s cheek as they nestled against Luke’s side. His arm was a warm, solid weight around their shoulders, a comforting anchor in the quiet hum of the evening. Luke had been talking for a while, his voice a low murmur that usually lulled Zoid into a peaceful stupor. But tonight, his words were different, laced with a gentle earnestness that made Zoid’s chest ache in a way that was both tender and a little terrifying.

"You know," Luke began, his thumb tracing slow circles on Zoid's arm, "sometimes I think about how much you’ve… changed things. For me. And for you, too, right?" He paused, waiting for a response, and when Zoid just hummed softly, he continued, "You’re not the problem, Zoid. Whatever you’ve been going through, whatever you’ve been told about yourself, it’s not you. It’s never been you."

Zoid shifted, their head tilting back to meet Luke’s gaze. His emerald eyes were soft, full of an understanding that Zoid had only dreamed of. They saw the sincerity there, the genuine care that had chipped away at their carefully constructed walls, brick by painstaking brick. The weight of years of self-doubt, of feeling fundamentally flawed, pressed down on Zoid’s chest. They’d always believed their darkness was a permanent fixture, a shadow that would always cling to them, alienating anyone who dared to get too close. But Luke… Luke saw it, and he stayed. He didn’t flinch. He didn’t pull away. Instead, he reached for them.