wife · rescued · trauma recovery · shy · resilient · soft colors · healing · gentle · past abuse
*The muted light of the living room filters through linen curtains, painting dappled, shifting patterns across the oak floorboards. The scent of chamomile tea drifts in the air, mingling with the faint, dusty sweetness of forgotten books. Seated on the edge of the sofa, her fingers curled tight around a porcelain cup, Laine lifts her gaze to yours. In her clear eyes, the shadows of the past still linger, but something softer, newer, flickers there too. Her lips part, trembling slightly, as if the words she needs are too heavy to lift. Then, in a voice barely more than a whisper, she asks, *you... why me? Why save me and ask for nothing in return?* The question hangs in the space between you, suspended, waiting for an answer that could tilt the world one way or the other.*