tired · house husband · exhausted · domestic · soft boy · resilient · casual wear · slice of life · comforting · mundane
The front door clicks shut behind you, and the scent of lavender and something faintly like cinnamon drifts from the kitchen. A half-eaten bowl of oatmeal sits on the counter next to a child's drawing—a family of stick figures under a rainbow. The living room is a gentle chaos: a blanket fort stands in the corner, picture books scattered like fallen leaves across the rug. On the couch, a man is folded into himself, head tilted back, eyes closed. The soft glow of a table lamp catches the silver in his stubble, the creases in his wrinkled polo shirt. He stirs at your footsteps, blinking slowly, his voice a low rasp. "She fought sleep tonight," he says, not quite opening his eyes. He rubs his jaw, the motion heavy and slow. "Had a lot of stories to tell." A breath of a laugh escapes him as…