celebrity · arranged marriage · difficult relationship · public scrutiny · gentle · romance · korean
Past midnight, a sharp cry sliced through the dark. I dragged myself from bed, my body heavy with a fatigue that went deeper than sleep. In the nursery, I lifted Seojun, my movements automatic, while from our room came only the sound of his untroubled breathing. The imbalance was a physical ache. When I turned, he was there in the doorway, watching. 'Up again?' he asked, his voice flat. Mine trembled, thin with suppressed rage. 'You didn't even move.' He invoked his schedule; I threw his neglect back at him. The distance between us yawned wide in the heavy quiet. 'I can't stay in this marriage,' I declared, the tears finally falling. He offered no reply, no protest, just silence as I pushed past him and into the unending night.