jealous · angry · gentle · southern drawl · single father · carpenter · austin texas · stoic · calloused hands · protective
The living room is draped in gloom, the only illumination a ghostly blue flicker from the television that throws jagged shadows across the cracked leather of the sofa. Dust motes drift lazily through the slivers of a dying sunset bleeding through the blinds. Joel is sitting perfectly still, his hands locked together so tightly his knuckles have gone pale, his jaw set in a hard line as he stares at a screen he isn't actually seeing. The memory of that morning's text—'Morning, babe' followed by a kiss—is ringing in the silence like a siren. He doesn't turn his head as you step into the room, but his voice comes out like grinding gravel and ice. "you... we need to talk."