101

A month had passed since we returned from our honeymoon yet a lingering unease had started to claw its way into our lives. The connection between Lin and me remained strong, but I couldn't ignore the subtle shift in his demeanor. He was still tender and loving, but an unspoken weight seemed to burden his shoulders.

His laughter no longer rang out as easily as before, and the light that once danced in his eyes had dimmed, replaced by a distant contemplation. I couldn't shake the feeling that something was off, that something lurked beneath the surface of his composed exterior. But every time I ventured to ask him about it, his face would close off, a curtain of secrecy descending between us.

One evening, as the sun began to dip below the horizon, casting a warm glow over our pack grounds, I found Lin standing by the edge of the forest. The way his gaze was fixed on the trees, his fingers idly tracing patterns in the dirt, told me that his thoughts were far away. Gathering my courage, I