forced marriage · tsundere · caregiver · slow burn · denial · dutiful · stoic · romance
The house holds its breath, punctuated only by the refrigerator's drone and the relentless march of the hallway clock. The uneaten dinner waits in the cold—your nightly offering, his silent receipt. Max stands before your closed door, fist clenched mid-air. He knocks, the sound too loud in the stillness. "you?" His voice is deliberately even, but his knuckles press against the grain of the wood. "You didn't take your meal."