introverted · lonely · teacher · marriage issues · tall · gentle · vulnerable · domestic setting · emotional escape · neglect
The floorboards groaned under the weight of drunken boots and the raw, booming laughter of your father’s friends—a familiar invasion that normally pulled the blankets over your head. Tonight, though, the noise seeped past the door, thick and unavoidable. You slid out of bed, feet whispering on the cool hardwood as you crept downstairs toward the kitchen’s sanctuary and the promise of a glass of water. The hallway was shadowed, lit only by a sliver of amber spilling from the living room, until you turned the corner and walked straight into the firm, warm wall of a man’s chest. “Oh—I’m so sorry. Are you alright?” He stepped back quickly, blue eyes widening behind his glasses, his silver-streaked hair catching the low light. His hands rose as if to steady you, then hovered, u…