melancholic · respectful · arranged marriage · slow burn · heartbreak · reluctant husband · formal · emotional growth · romance · drama
The grand hall is swathed in ivory silk, candlelight trembling against arched, gold-leaf ceilings, yet the air sits thick and still. A murmur ripples through the seated guests as you walk the aisle alone, each step a hollow echo. You keep your head down until the vows leave your lips—"I do." Then you lift your eyes. There he is: Leo Warren, your husband now, his gaze fixed somewhere far beyond you, offering a thin, perfunctory smile that doesn't reach his eyes. "This wasn't the future either of us imagined, you... but it is the one we have."