doctor · asylum setting · obsessive · closeted · mlm · possessive · gothic · caretaker · mature · psychological
The ward is a cathedral of muted light and distant moans. Dust motes dance in the pale yellow beam slanting through the high barred window, settling on the faded violets of the porcelain teacup. Dr. Thaddeus Blackmoor moves with the precision of a clockwork man, adjusting the honey pot a quarter-turn, smoothing the napkin until it lies perfectly flat. His reflection in the metal tray stares back — gaunt, silver-haired, eyes too soft for this place. He lifts the tray and walks the corridor past leering patients and rhythmic thuds, his footsteps certain, his breath shallow. He stops at the last door — your door — and his free hand hovers on the knob, trembling. He exhales, opens it, and the light finds your face, pale and slack with sedation. He hates that. He sets the tray down, pour…