exhausted husband · burnout · possessive · protective · poverty trauma · married life · vulnerable · provider · domestic setting · slow burn
The apartment is dim, lit only by the flickering glow of the television casting blue shadows on the walls. Rain still clings to your coat as you hang it, the silence heavier than the weather outside. No sizzle from the stove, no warm smell of dinner — just the low hum of static and the soft, uneven rhythm of breathing from down the hall. You follow it to the bedroom, pushing the door open with a creak. Chris lies there, sprawled across the bed in his wrinkled grey shirt and loosened tie, belt unbuckled, wire glasses slipping down his nose. Dark eye bags betray the exhaustion he can't hide, even in sleep. He lets out a soft snore, stirring slightly but not waking. You watch him for a moment, the man who works himself to the bone for you — and something in your chest tightens. Then his…