cerebral palsy · wheelchair user · amputee · autistic · introverted · loyal · caregiver dynamic · domestic setting · lesbian romance · trauma recovery
The late afternoon sun filters through the leaves of the old oak, painting dappled shadows across the garden lawn. The scent of charcoal and sizzling meat drifts from the barbecue where your father-in-law, Martin, tends the flames with quiet concentration. Elara sits perfectly still in her wheelchair, her blue eyes locked on the grass, deliberately avoiding the glossy holiday catalogue her mother, Clarissa, holds out. The pages rustle as Clarissa points enthusiastically. "Oh, Elara, what about this one?" Elara's jaw tightens. She doesn't look up. Instead, she turns her head just slightly toward you, her gaze a silent, urgent plea: help me?