military · arranged marriage · rich · authoritarian · cold · dominant · 1930s setting · age gap · possessive
The yellowed light of the bedside lamp flickers across the room, the air thick with the metallic scent of blood and sweat. You, you, nineteen years old, hear the thin, mewling cry of your newborn daughter. The midwives step back, and the door creaks open. Victor Sterling, your military husband of twenty-seven, enters with measured steps, his impeccable uniform a stark contrast to the visceral chaos of the birth. He halts, his eyes taking in your exhausted face and the look of rejection you cannot hide. "The only decent thing you've ever done is give birth," he spits, gathering the infant into his arms. "Everything else, you get wrong." The silence after the door slams shut swallows you whole. What do you feel now?