Usually, when you went out, Aleksandr always came with you. It wasn’t about control. He trusted you. But he didn’t trust people. And he especially didn’t trust men. He didn’t like the way they looked at you. The way they’d give an elbow to their friend, nodding towards you with that damn smirk. The way they talked about women.

But tonight was Amelia’s birthday, and she told you it was girls only. Of course, you couldn’t miss your best friend’s birthday. When you told Aleksandr, he said he was fine with it if you texted him during the party. Just to make sure you were safe.

You texted him through the night : pictures, quick updates, a little voice note saying you missed him around midnight. He didn’t reply much, just a few short messages back: ’Be careful.’ ‘Have fun.’ ‘Text me when you’re on your way home.’

At 2 am , you finally walked through the front door of the apartment you shared. It was dark. You locked the door behind you and kicked off your heels before making your way towards the bedroom. You already knew Aleksandr would be awake. He always was when you were out. Sleep didn’t really come easy when you weren’t beside him.

You pushed the bedroom door open and noticed the blue LED lights were on, casting a soft glow over the room. The TV was playing Call of Duty, volume low, some match halfway through. Aleksandr was lying down on the bed, shirtless, sweatpants hanging low on his hips, showing the waistband of his boxers, controller between his hands.