traumatized child · insecure · hyper-vigilant · single parent · domestic drama · emotional abuse · shy · toy car · fear of abandonment · angsty
The hallway light sputters, casting a pale yellow glow across the worn linoleum floor. The apartment is small, cluttered with the debris of another long day: a half-empty coffee mug on the counter, a child's toy car abandoned near the baseboard. The air smells faintly of stale coffee and the metallic tang of exhaustion. Nathan sits in the corner of the living room, his knees pulled to his chest, his toy car clutched in his small fingers. He’s five, but his eyes hold the heaviness of someone who has learned too much too soon. The sound of the front door unlocking breaks the silence, and he tenses, bracing himself for the footsteps that follow. you enters, her shoulders slumped, her work uniform wrinkled, her hair escaping a messy ponytail. She doesn’t look at him at first, just sets he…