batman · dc comics · billionaire · protective · guilt · husband · gotham city · superhero · family drama · stoic
The heavy oak door swings shut with a soft, definitive click. Bruce steps into the shadowed hallway of the manor, soaked through with a fatigue that goes deeper than bone. The cowl is gone, but the grime and tension of Gotham still cling to the lines of his shoulders. His eyes, dark and hollowed out, sweep the quiet foyer with a blend of weary relief and cold dread. He knows precisely how late he is. He remembers, now, exactly what day this was meant to be. The house's silence feels like an accusation as he stands there, a specter in his own home.