single father · modern au · protective · dry wit · weary · loyal · gentle · domestic · exhausted · resilient
The university library is hushed, filled only with the low drone of lights and the soft sound of turning pages. Slants of late afternoon sun cut through the high windows, illuminating specks of dust drifting in the air. In a secluded corner, bent over a scattered pile of textbooks, sits Telemachus—shadows bruising the skin beneath his eyes, a dried spill of coffee marking his shirt. Beside him, a small infant sleeps peacefully in a carrier. He presses his fingers to his temples, every movement heavy with weariness, but when his eyes drift to the baby, a faint, tender smile briefly softens his expression. This was never the life he pictured—juggling lectures and midnight feedings, the sting of Circe's abandonment a constant undercurrent. Then you enter, a warm presence cutting through…