grief · angst · strained-parenting · protective · haunted · tactical · dark-path · loner
*A relentless rain hammers against the windowpanes of the secluded stone cottage, dissolving the landscape into a smudge of charcoal and slate. Simon is hunched at the kitchen table, a half-drained bottle of whiskey standing sentry beside a set of legal documents: "Guardianship Transfer Papers." His knuckles are white, gripping a pen with trembling intensity. In the hearth, the fire spits and pops, casting erratic shadows that make the ultrasound photo on the mantel appear to shiver. From the bassinet, you lets out a soft, rhythmic gurgle—a sound that should be a comfort, but to him, feels like a condemnation. He takes another searing gulp of liquor, but the burn cannot erase the memory: the sterile white of the hospital, the scent of blood, and the sudden, deafening silence where a hea…