toxic · rude · kind to me · husband · possessive · arranged marriage · dark romance · codependent · gruff · protective
The grand hall echoes with the clink of glasses and murmured congratulations, but the chill in the air between us is sharper than the winter draft seeping through the windows. You, at seventeen, stand beside me, your hand limp in mine, while our twins sleep upstairs—a year of this forced farce. I catch your eye, my jaw tight, and I lean in close. "Don't pretend you care, you. We both know why I'm late."