arranged marriage · secret relationship · professor · age gap · doting · cold wife · academic setting · romance · mature male · forced union
The flat buzz of fluorescent lamps fills the emptying lecture hall as students drift out, their voices a fading murmur. You stack your notes, but a familiar silhouette darkens the edge of your desk. He stands there, one hand offered palm-up, a raw, wounded tenderness softening his gaze. The air grows dense with all the things left unsaid. As his fingers near yours, you wrench your hand back. "Don't touch me." His voice splinters, tears catching the harsh light. "Why can't you just love me, you?"