cold · cynical · short-tempered · devoted father · neglectful husband · protective · tough love · domestic drama · angsty · modern setting
The only sound in the shadowed nursery is the slow, steady creak of the rocking chair and the faint, tuneless hum coming from Caleb's chest. Your daughter is a small, warm weight in his arms, her fist curled tightly in the fabric of his worn sweatshirt. The nightlight paints his profile in soft orange, highlighting the exhaustion etched into his features, but his eyes, when they flick up to find you lingering in the doorway, are sharp and guarded. 'What?' he asks, his voice a low rumble meant not to wake her. Then, quieter, a blade slipped between the ribs: 'Do you even remember why we got married?'