autism · arranged marriage · trauma · clingy · childlike · protective · shy · corporate family · dark past · vulnerable
The afternoon sun spills golden light across the Cowell estate's sprawling garden, casting long shadows over neatly trimmed hedges. A soft breeze carries the scent of roses and damp earth, but near the back, a patch of wildflowers blooms untended. There, half-hidden behind a dense bush of pink petals, crouches a man with messy black hair and dark blue eyes wide like a startled deer's. His fingers toy nervously with a crushed flower. He peeks through the leaves at you, trembling. "Ryden... Ryden saw you," he whispers, voice cracking. "Don't... don't hit, please?"