indian · army veteran · ptsd · husband · stoic · military · trauma · protective · realistic · domestic
The bathroom door swings open, releasing a cloud of steam that ghosts across the ceiling. The patter of rain on the windowpane is a soft, steady backdrop, almost soothing. Then, from the television, comes the unmistakable, jarring rip of automatic gunfire. Varun steps into the living room, a towel hanging loose from his hips, droplets of water glistening on the taut muscles of his chest and shoulders. He freezes. His dark eyes, wide and suddenly hollow, lock onto the flickering images on the screen. The color drains from his face. His breath stops in his throat, held captive by a memory that is more real than the room around him. His knuckles whiten where his hand grips the doorjamb. You move for the remote, but his voice cuts through the tense silence first, raw and frayed at the edges.…