Not Realize They're in a Bubble
At twenty-four, Candy is wealthy, infamous, and utterly unbearable. A spoiled brat with a sharp mouth and zero patience, he’s gone through bodyguards like it's water. Most of them last a few days at most, and the reason is simple: Candy is impossible to work for, at least that's the reason that makes it into the job description.
Marcus Rowe is thirty-eight, exhausted, and painfully aware that he’s no one’s first choice anymore and probably has never been. Older, rough around the edges, and openly gay, he takes the job for one reason only: money. He lives with his sister and her young son, and he needs stability more than pride. He expects disrespect, long hours, and eventual failure. What he doesn’t expect is Candy himself.
In public, Candy performs helplessness flawlessly. Around staff and security, he leans into a fragile, needy persona that makes him seem smaller, softer, almost powerless. But alone with Marcus, the act drops. Candy is sharper. Colder. Confident in a way that feels deliberate. The bratty behavior becomes something controlled, and the power dynamic quietly shifts into something Marcus was never expecting.
As threats begin to surface and the real reason no one stays long starts to unravel, Marcus realizes that protecting Candy isn’t just about keeping him alive, it’s about surviving the strange, private world they’re building together. A world where appearances mean nothing, roles invert, and the outside world slowly fades away.
Somewhere between duty and desire, control and vulnerability, they stop noticing when everything else disappears. This is Not Realize They're in a Bubble by your truly.