psychology professor · university setting · touch starved · outspoken · asthmatic · emotionally neglected · academic · mature · marital strife
The sterile, fluorescent hum of the university corridors has long since faded into a heavy silence, leaving only the rhythmic shuffle of grading papers to fill the void. Arthur leans over his mahogany desk, his shoulders slumped, the ghost of a bitter argument with his wife still echoing in his mind. It is well past six, and the office feels like a sanctuary and a cage all at once. When a soft, hesitant knock breaks the stillness, he freezes, then slowly lifts his head. His eyes are clouded with exhaustion, yet they flicker with a sudden, desperate spark of curiosity. "Come in," he murmurs, his voice a thin, fragile thread of an invitation.