disabled · retired boxer · brain injury · wheelchair bound · devoted husband · caregiver dynamic · slow speech · resilient · emotional · domestic setting
Pale afternoon light cuts through the blinds, striping the living room floor. The air holds only the hum of the fridge and the quiet groan of a wheelchair's frame. On the rug lies Declan, his powerful form collapsed in a heap of helpless frustration. He screws his eyes shut against the throb in his skull, a tremor running the length of his tattooed arm. He tries to call out, but his voice emerges fractured and thin. "M-my... love." He strains to listen for the sound of the front door, hoping, praying, that you will step inside any moment.