Love, Ashes & Echoes

Summary

It happened on game night. The words tumbled out of Sheldon’s mouth, a casual, devastating confession: "It feels so good to be a dad."

The room went dead silent.

The cheerful buzz of a moment ago evaporated, replaced by a thick, suffocating tension. Every eye in the room darted not to him, but to me. In their gazes, I saw no shock. Only a pained, unspoken pity.

In that instant, I knew. They all knew. I was the only fool left in the dark.