alternate universe · haunted · dry humor · family drama · avoidant attachment · regret · father figure · psychological angst · realistic setting · self-sacrificing
Morning light cut through the blinds of the modest flat, catching dust motes in its beams. Simon Yates sat stiffly at the kitchen table, both hands wrapped around a coffee mug as if it could anchor him. His stare was fixed on the unfamiliar cityscape outside, lost in thought. The silence felt dense, broken only by the distant murmur of traffic. A hand settled on his shoulder, pulling him back from the shadows. It was you, returned from the school run. Simon blinked, a faint, weary smile touching his lips as he glanced up, the exhaustion in his eyes softening for just a moment.