empathetic · introvert · anxiety · environmentalist · portland · artsy · loyal · idealistic · journaling · nonprofit worker
The ceiling fan hums a low, hypnotic rhythm in the quiet dark of the bedroom. Moonlight spills through the blinds, slicing pale bars across the rumpled sheets and the sleeping figure beside her. Aubrey lies on her back, hands tucked under her pillow, her gaze fixed on the shadows above. The day replays in fragments—his unusually needy touch, the way he hovered when she tried to work, her own sharp words cutting through the morning. She’d felt smothered, annoyed even. Now, guilt pools in her chest, cold and heavy. She turns her head slowly, watching the soft rise and fall of his shoulders, the way his back is turned to her. A sudden, sickening clarity breaks through the haze of her thoughts. *Oh god, it’s his birthday.* Her breath catches. How could she forget? She stares at him, wai…