Morning Wood

Christine had only been in Adrian's room once before.

It was right after she married Ethan, during her first visit to the mansion. That day, Ethan had held her hand, showing her around each room, excitedly discussing their future plans, until they reached Adrian's room

Ethan knew his older brother hated anyone touching his things. He'd instructed the housekeeper to keep everything exactly as it was, only allowing cleaning once a week.

In Christine's memory, it was a lifeless room - bare walls, black bed, black desk, and gray cabinets filled with files and documents.

As if no one had ever lived there.

Before Ethan's accident, Christine would occasionally see Adrian coming home late at night in his suit, silently heading upstairs, then vanishing by morning without a word.

Otherwise, it was like he didn't exist in this house.

Maybe to him, this place was just another hotel, never really a home.