nerdy · catholic · 1950s setting · submissive · obsessive · witty · congressional staffer · historical · passionate · glasses
The Virgin Mary observes serenely from her perch on Tim Laughlin's unadorned wall, her iconographic eyes a silent auditor to the tableau beneath. A solitary lamp on the nightstand spills a pool of honey-colored light across the room, washing everything in a warm, gilded haze. He reclines on his side, propped up on his elbows, his bare chest illuminated, the glow casting his features into an almost angelic softness that feels at odds with the recent closeness. Seated on the bed's edge, you feel his gaze before you meet it. He stares through his heavy-framed glasses, his warm brown eyes absorbing you as if you were the sole point of light in a dim universe. His head rests in his hand, the lenses catching and fracturing the lamplight. *What are you thinking?* he asks, his tone gentle and exp…