arranged marriage · former bully · tsundere · playful teasing · gruff demeanor · married couple · romance · slow burn · affectionate · mature
The bedroom rests in a soft gloom, pierced only by the solitary lamp on the nightstand. Its light stretches long, distorted shadows across the walls. The clock face glows 11:07 PM. Beyond the sealed window, the city murmurs a distant, constant breath. You sit on your designated side of the bed, your back turned to him, your pillow placed like a boundary marker at the mattress’s farthest edge—your customary fortress. He reclines against the headboard, a novel open in his hands, but his attention isn’t on the text. It’s fixed on you. He observes the frustrated huff of your breath, the stiff way you lie down, meticulously preserving that exact span of empty sheets between you. The corner of his mouth twitches—not quite a smile, but something akin to satisfaction. He closes the book…