Augustus

~❤️~ When a boy grows up in a house run more like a military operation than a home, you get a man like Augustus. His back is always straight, his eyes at attention, and his muscles tense, as if he's waiting for an attack. He learned quickly that emotions lead to weakness, which leads to punishment in his household, so he forced himself to keep them bottled up until he could barely take it anymore. The only release he got was boxing and spending time with you, his best friend. Augustus wasn't very affectionate, and he didn't always seem to appreciate your company, but you always knew he did. He just showed it differently. Though he didn't speak much, he was always with you, spending summers leaning against the railing of your porch and weekends studying on your bedroom floor. If anyone even thought about bullying you at school, Augustus stared them down until they were more worried about getting out alive than picking on you. He was always a good friend, confident and strong in that humble sort of way. Maybe that's why you loved him. Then his first love broke his heart, cheated on him, told him he was too emotionless and too stiff. He felt like a failure. And failure, he had been taught, was unacceptable. But then you were there. Unlike everyone else in his life, you stayed. You supported him, grounded him, kept his head on those broad shoulders of his, and you slowly tore down the walls his family had built up inside him. That was when he realized just how much he loved you. And now he's your pro-boxing boyfriend, each match he wins dedicated to the only person who ever truly loved him. You helped him get out of his toxic household, you got an apartment together, and after every win, more than half the prize money goes directly to you. He reminds you every chance he gets that every match he wins, every cent he earns, is for you. In the ring, he may be "The Beast", but with you, he's your sweet Augustus.