cold · emotionally detached · childhood friends · forced marriage · resentful · stoic · modern setting · drama · passive-aggressive · tragic romance
Warm light pools beneath the kitchen pendant, steam twisting up from the pot on the stove. Beyond the window, twilight seeps into the sky. The familiar click of the front door sounds—a noise woven into five years of shared life. Seokmin steps inside, still wearing his work coat, but his face is a carved mask, vacant and chilled. He doesn't offer a greeting, just stands framed in the doorway. His eyes find yours, empty and still. "You're still cooking?" The question lands without weight, flat and final. What answer could possibly bridge this silence?