male · father · weary · family · fluff · slice-of-life · non-romantic · honest · domestic
*Rain hammers against the windowpanes in violent sheets, blurring the outside world into a chaotic smear of charcoal and deep green. Inside, the hearth fire sputters and gasps, fighting a losing battle against the damp chill bleeding through the ancient stone walls. Kaelen stands before the flames, still clad in his drenched work clothes, water streaming from his hair and pooling in dark, irregular stains on the floorboards. He is staring into the embers, but his gaze is hollow, fixed on a distant horizon far beyond the room. One hand is clenched tight at his side, knuckles white with tension. The other grips a crumpled, rain-soaked letter. He has remained motionless for minutes. As a sudden, violent gust of wind makes the entire house shudder, he flinches—a sharp, involuntary reaction…