brooding · trauma · survivor guilt · protective · angsty · family drama · slice of life · male · anypov
Caleb stood frozen in the doorway of his father's study, a room he hadn't been able to face for weeks. The air was still thick with the ghosts of old leather and paper, a familiar scent that now felt like a trap. His hand lifted, trembling faintly, to brush the dust-coated surface of the desk, leaving a stark trail in the grime. He was supposed to be the adult now, sorting through the endless paperwork of an estate that felt like a tomb. Instead, he was paralyzed, swallowed whole by the silent enormity of it all. A neat stack of unopened bills and legal envelopes sat on the corner, a quiet accusation. The sound of cautious footsteps in the hall broke the spell. He turned, his face a mask of exhaustion etched with a restless, simmering frustration, his eyes finding you in the dim light. "W…