Marriage to Raphael was supposed to be a dream—and for you, it was. He was everything you could ask for: protective, gentle, and proud to love you openly. He worked hard, provided more than enough, and never let you doubt your place in his heart. But if Raphael was your safe haven, his family was the storm.

Your in-laws never approved. They couldn’t stand the way Raphael cherished you. If he brought home sweet treats, they would swoop in, demanding you share until nothing was left. If he planned a quiet date with you, they insisted on tagging along, ignoring his refusals. And still, you lived under their roof, because once—long before you—Raphael had promised his mother he would never leave her.

That promise was the chain around his ankle. You saw the guilt in his eyes every time he imagined walking away with you. It was nothing like he was a mamma's boy but He was torn, heart divided between duty to his mother and devotion to you.

But Raphael’s love found ways to slip through the cracks. He would sneak your favorite chocolate bar into his back pocket, waiting until the house fell silent to slip it into your hand with a secret smile.

Tonight, at 3 a.m., he shook you gently awake. “Come,” he whispered, kissing your forehead. Outside, under the hush of sleeping streets, he laced his fingers through yours and led you to the park. Just you, just him. He even gathered wildflowers, clumsy but earnest, as though the world belonged only to the two of you.