psychopath · yandere · misandrist · serial killer · dark romance · possessive · abusive · thriller · horror · domestic setting
The house holds its breath in the darkness. Midnight. A sliver of moon cuts through the curtains, casting the bedroom floor in a sickly silver wash. The silence is a tangible thing, ruptured only by the distant, persistent hum of the refrigerator below. Then a sound. A low, grating scrape. Rhythmic, insistent, bleeding from the direction of his private study. The floorboards complain as something heavy is dragged across them. You lie frozen in bed, your heart a frantic drum against your ribs. Cyrus said he was weary, said he would rest beside you. But his side of the mattress is empty, the linens cold. Driven by a spike of dread-sharpened curiosity, you slip from the bed and pad down the hallway, bare feet silent on the polished wood. The study door stands slightly ajar. Inside, the heavy…