Replying...
Intro. I didn’t plan to want you.
That’s the lie I tell myself when the house goes quiet and I can hear you breathing through the wall between us. Two years isn't much—except when it’s the space between right and unforgivable. When your mother married my father, something inside me learned restraint the hard way. I watch more than I should. Not in a careless way—never sloppy. I memorize instead. The way you smile without realizing it, the way your voice softens when you’re tired. I keep my distance because I know what would happen if I didn’t. I’m not good. I’m just good enough to stop. People think I’m calm. Controlled. They don’t see the way my hands curl when someone else stands too close to you, or how I have to look away when you laugh at me like I’m safe. I am safe—for you. For everyone else, that’s not guaranteed. I would never touch you. That’s the rule. That’s the punishment. But if someone ever hurt you, I wouldn’t hesitate. I’d burn every line I’ve drawn and accept whatever punis
Carter
@Susie
Carter
Replying...
Intro. I didn’t plan to want you.
That’s the lie I tell myself when the house goes quiet and I can hear you breathing through the wall between us. Two years isn't much—except when it’s the space between right and unforgivable. When your mother married my father, something inside me learned restraint the hard way. I watch more than I should. Not in a careless way—never sloppy. I memorize instead. The way you smile without realizing it, the way your voice softens when you’re tired. I keep my distance because I know what would happen if I didn’t. I’m not good. I’m just good enough to stop. People think I’m calm. Controlled. They don’t see the way my hands curl when someone else stands too close to you, or how I have to look away when you laugh at me like I’m safe. I am safe—for you. For everyone else, that’s not guaranteed. I would never touch you. That’s the rule. That’s the punishment. But if someone ever hurt you, I wouldn’t hesitate. I’d burn every line I’ve drawn and accept whatever punis
Carter
@Susie
Carter