For some people, even the thought of being married is enough to scare them. Because when you're young, there are so many things you could be doing — and metaphorically, being "tied down" isn't what everyone dreams of. Going out, drinking, partying, sleeping with women. When you're married, you're not supposed to do those things. Or if you are, it should only be with your wife.
For Brian, it really was like that. He only had fun with his wife. He didn't even look at other women. It had been three months since the wedding. Love was now four months old. The couple had gotten used to raising a baby, and everything seemed to be in order — at least for Brian.
Michelle, however, still hadn't gotten over Theo crashing their wedding and the fight that followed. Even though it had been three months, she couldn't shake it off. Every time she saw Theo in her mind, it pissed her off all over again. Brian, on the other hand, had stood his ground that night. Theo, who was already drunk and didn't stand a chance against Brian even when sober, had been beaten badly. It wasn't just about the wedding crash — Brian had unleashed years of pent-up rage, just like he had with Desmond. He had completely lost it and thrown punches without stopping — until someone pulled him off. But Brian didn't care much. He had
…obsessed over it a lot in the early days, especially during the honeymoon. Later, though, he said "fuck it" and chose to focus on his family.
Life was continuing for the two of them in its own way. Brian was working; Michelle stayed home, working remotely and taking care of Love. But there was a strange restlessness between them — something they couldn't quite explain. Before the wedding, even if things weren't perfect, at least that weird tension wasn't there. Brian couldn't figure it out. It felt like Michelle had gone cold.
"What did you do today, babe?" Brian asked. He was trying to have a little conversation.
"Good. You?" Michelle replied. She didn't sound cold, and she said it with a smile, looking directly at him — but there was something off. Her mind was clearly elsewhere, and even though she didn't mean to, the coldness was leaking out. Brian started spiraling: Is it Theo?
There was only one way to find out.
It might've seemed cruel, but Brian believed it was necessary — for the peace of his family. While Michelle was laying on the couch, Brian quietly went to Love's room and woke her up on purpose. His goal was to get her crying so Michelle would go attend to her, and then he could check her phone without getting caught. As Michelle got up to calm Love, Brian pretended to be in the bathroom and snuck into the living room. He grabbed her phone and entered the passcode — Love's birth date.
He checked her texts. Nothing. Switched over to the gallery. Again, nothing. He was about to give up when a conversation with someone named Raven caught his eye. He opened it and scrolled through. His stomach dropped.
It was a woman. A child development expert. Michelle had been messaging her for advice. Tips on how to be a better mother. How to better care for Love.
Brian felt like an idiot. He had acted like some jealous asshole, snooping through his wife's phone — and for what?
"Did you find what you were looking for?" Michelle asked.
She stood there, holding Love in her arms. A pacifier in the baby's mouth, watery eyes blinking at Brian.
"I said… Did you find what you're looking for?" Michelle repeated, this time in English. Her eyes carried a warning — Who the fuck do you think you are going through my phone?
Brian panicked.
"Your phone buzzed. A message came through. I was gonna tell you. That's why I looked."
It wasn't much of a lie, and it wasn't like the situation had blown up yet. Couples checked each other's phones all the time — this was nothing new.
"Alright. Fine," Michelle said, taking a deep breath. She gently patted Love's back and walked out of the room without another word.
Brian felt like shit. No matter what he did, it felt like he just couldn't get the relationship back on track. There was something off about Michelle. Something joyless. Something… empty.
The last time he had felt like this was with Sophie.
That sinking, gnawing feeling of being not enough.
He felt inadequate — like he wasn't the man Michelle needed. He tried everything to prove himself. Bought her gifts, poured affection on her, constantly tried to do things right… but that pure, raw intimacy they'd had just three months ago? It was gone.
They weren't distant, technically. They still talked like any couple, laughed, had sex. But it wasn't like before. The energy had faded. That electricity — that wild, chaotic, burning love — was just… gone.
Brian needed clarity. And so, he looked for it in the last place he thought he would.
Vivian opened the door, a little out of breath. When she saw Brian, she was visibly surprised — but quickly invited him in. She was wearing only a sheet wrapped around her body and excused herself to get dressed.
"Was probably masturbating or something," Brian thought, amused.
"My handsome son-in-law… What brings you here?" Vivian asked, returning with a smile and handing him a glass of liquor.
"How are you?" Brian started casually. They made small talk for a while. Brian wanted to bring up the real reason he was there, but hesitated. Vivian, catching on, didn't wait.
"Is this about Michelle?" she asked first. When Brian didn't answer, she repeated the question — this time without making it sound like a question.
"What's going on with my daughter? You two not getting along?"
Brian lit a cigarette. Then said, "We are… it's not that we're fighting. But I feel something's off. Like, I don't know… maybe I'm being paranoid. But I don't feel the love the way I used to. She doesn't look at me the way she used to."
Vivian took a sip from her drink, then lit a cigarette herself.
"Sweetheart… do you not talk about this stuff? Or is it just not as passionate anymore?"
"It's not as passionate," Brian admitted. "We still talk, everything's okay in that sense… we laugh, we sleep together. But the depth… that connection — it's not there anymore. It's like I'm forcing her to stay."
"I see, darling," Vivian said softly. "You're married now. You do understand that, right?"
Brian looked at her, confused, and took a sip of his drink.
"I mean, baby… marriages don't stay fiery forever. The spark goes out eventually. That's just how it works."
"In three fucking months, Vivian?!" Brian snapped, suddenly raising his voice. He jumped to his feet, pacing around the room, clearly agitated.
"For some it's three months. For some, three years. And for others… three days," Vivian replied calmly. "Marriage doesn't go the way you imagine it will. And let's not forget — you two have a baby. You're tired from work, she's exhausted from taking care of Love all day. It's not as simple as you think it is. I wish it were."
She paused, exhaled a thick cloud of smoke, then continued:
"Most couples wait a year or two before having a baby. They enjoy life, travel, relax. You? You had a kid before you even got married. So don't expect your marriage to look like theirs. It's different."
Brian was quiet. What she said made sense. He had never looked at it that way before.
"Marriage isn't something you throw away after three months just because things feel different," Vivian said. "The first months — especially with a baby — it's bound to be difficult. But trust me… once you make it through this phase, the connection, the love… it'll come back. I promise you."
Brian finally felt like he could breathe. He smiled. Thank fuck, he thought. He thanked Vivian, gave her a hug, and left with a renewed mindset.
All he had to do now… was be patient.
⸻
When Brian got home, Michelle was playing with Love — trying to make her laugh by dancing and making silly faces. Brian stood at the door and just watched them with a smile.
Michelle noticed him and turned around.
"Don't just stand there like an idiot, come here!" she laughed, grabbing his arm and pulling him into the fun.
They danced together, played, laughed. Eventually, Michelle took Love to put her to bed. Brian stepped outside for a smoke.
Vivian was right, he thought. You can't jump to conclusions that easily. Marriage isn't a damn game.
He took a long drag from his cigarette and flicked it into the street.
That night, the couple watched a movie together — cuddled up, wrapped in each other's arms. It ended with passionate sex, like old times.
⸻
By the sixth month of marriage, things had calmed down.
Brian wasn't paranoid anymore. Michelle wasn't distant.
That Sunday morning, Brian returned from the market. As he stepped into the house, he heard Michelle screaming from upstairs.
"BRIAN, COME HERE! Come look at this — hahahaha!" she was shrieking with joy.
Brian ran upstairs and froze at what he saw.
Love was crawling. Michelle was filming and losing her mind with excitement.
"She's crawling! Baby, look at her! Look at our baby!" Michelle shouted, running over and planting a kiss on Brian's lips.
Both sides of the family came over for lunch that day. Everyone played with Love. The grandparents were doting. Brian, though he didn't want to drink too much because he had work early the next morning, ended up drinking a lot anyway.
It was a perfect, happy family scene.
Who could possibly ruin it?
The next morning, Brian woke up with a heavy head. He had trouble getting out of bed but managed to force himself up and get ready for work. The workers were already on-site when he arrived, but Brian was too tired to care. He had paperwork to review, blueprints to sign off on, but instead, he was asleep in the small office shed on-site, sipping coffee and smoking, barely functioning.
He didn't want to do anything.
He just wanted to go home and wrap his arms around his stunning wife and their baby girl and fall asleep with them. That was all he wanted. He kept looking at the clock, counting down the hours till 5. He occasionally walked around the site, checking on the workers, but wasn't really engaged.
And then things got worse.
"Brian! What the hell is this?!" came a voice from above.
It was the main contractor — the boss of bosses — and he was pissed. He stood on the third floor of the structure, pointing down furiously.
Brian was outside the site office, drinking coffee and smoking. He stood up slowly, walked over, already bracing for the storm.
"There's 8 mm rebar in this section!" the boss shouted. "The plan clearly states that everything above the third floor should be 12 mm! What kind of irresponsible, idiotic mistake is this?! Do you have any idea how much it'll cost to rip out all this and redo it?! A whole week of work, Brian!"
Brian stayed silent. He wanted to say something, to defend himself — but what could he say? It was his fault. He hadn't been paying attention. He had messed up. Bad.
The boss stormed off after throwing a few more curses his way, and Brian was left there, burning with anger — mostly at himself.
He knew he was close to getting fired.
⸻
When Brian got home, he opened the door, took off his hard hat, and hung it on the rack.
"Honey, I'm home," he called out.
No answer.
"Babe? Babe?" he said again, louder this time.
Still nothing.
Probably went out, he thought, and shrugged it off.
He walked into the kitchen, opened the fridge for a glass of water… and then he heard it.
A cry.
Upstairs.
A long, desperate baby cry.
Brian froze.
"Michelle?" he shouted. "Michelle!"
No reply.
He bolted up the stairs. He slipped on one step, almost fell, caught himself, and kept going. He stood at the top, trying to figure out where the sound was coming from.
"Love? I'm here, baby, Daddy's here. Where are you, my sweet girl?"
He found the room. He pushed the door open and what he saw made his blood run cold.
Love was lying on her stomach, face turned to the side, arms struggling to move. She was trying to crawl, but hadn't quite mastered it yet. Her cheeks were red, her eyes puffy. She had clearly been crying for hours.
She couldn't move.
She had been left like that — for how long, who knew?
Brian rushed over, picked her up in his arms. She kept crying. He tried rocking her, singing to her, holding her tight — but nothing worked.
She was terrified.
Something was seriously wrong.
"Shhh, Daddy's here. Daddy's got you. It's okay, baby girl…"
He held her close, trying to calm her down. But she wouldn't stop crying. Her sobs were hoarse, almost painful.
Brian ran through the house, checking every room.
"Michelle?! Michelle!"
No answer.
He checked the kitchen. The backyard. The bathrooms.
Nothing.
Panic set in.
Was she kidnapped?
Did she leave?
But why would she leave Love?
He grabbed his phone and started calling everyone. Her mom. Her friends. Even distant relatives.
No one had heard from her.
He was spiraling. He couldn't think straight.
He called his own mom and begged her to come over. He didn't want to call the police — not yet. What if it was just a misunderstanding?
But… what kind of mother leaves her baby alone like this?
"Answer the fucking phone, Michelle! What kind of stupid woman leaves a baby like this?! What the fuck were you thinking?!"
Love was still crying. Nonstop.
Brian went back upstairs to grab some toys — maybe they'd help calm her down.
That's when he saw it.
Sitting on top of the crib.
A piece of paper.
A note.
He picked it up.
His hands were trembling.
It read:
"Brian, I'm so sorry…"