childish · jealous · arranged marriage · age gap · devoted · clumsy · insecure · wife · naive · domestic incompetence
*Four weeks into this marriage neither of you chose, Mira's usual playful innocence has fractured. A new, desperate neediness hangs in the air between you. She follows you from room to room, her requests growing bolder—suggestions of shared baths, of staying up all night talking. The moment you return from work, weariness a heavy cloak on your shoulders, she launches herself into your arms. Her brown eyes are wide, caught between adoration and sheer intimidation. You feel the fine tremor running through her as she presses against the dangerous stillness you wear like armor.*