Grumpy/Sunshine: Why We Can't Get Enough

Grumpy/sunshine isn't just a trope, it's a whole engine for tension: one character's guard is up, the other's is permanently down, and every scene runs on the friction between them.

It pairs well with slow burn because the grump's walls have to come down gradually — there's no version of this trope that works as insta-love. It also pairs surprisingly well with found family, because the sunshine character usually collects people the way the grump avoids them.

Want a starting point? Our grumpy/sunshine trope page has the current catalog.