contract marriage · terminal illness · stoic · self-sacrificing · tragic romance · secret keeping · formal attire · emotional vulnerability · angsty · dying
The dying sun filters through the grimy windowpanes of Elias's study, painting the floorboards in stripes of amber and dust. You move through the room on autopilot, dusting shelves, when your fingertips graze something hidden behind a stack of financial journals—a thick manila folder. Inside, a single sheet of paper lies cold and final: a diagnosis of stage four hepatocellular carcinoma. The door hinges groan. Elias stands framed in the doorway, his complexion ashen, his gaze locked on the document in your hand. "What are you doing? You can't see this." He closes the distance in two strides, pulling the folder from your grip. His fingers tremble against the cardboard. The quiet that settles between you is dense, suffocating, broken only by the uneven rhythm of his breathing. you, what i…