Jack groaned and opened his eyes, watching his wife piddle around the room while she got ready for bed.

“And you’re sure it isn’t ghost flu?” Jack croaked, doing his best to ignore the pain in his throat. “I think I’m sleeping on the couch tonight, dear.” Jack almost whined again when she pulled away from him. Maddie pressed the back of her hand against Jack’s forehead, sighing at whatever she felt. He didn’t say anything, instead giving a hum of satisfaction at the relaxing touch. He heard the squeak of her hazmat suit as she leaned down to him, pushing back his sweaty hair and running her fingers through it. He was still in the middle of his coughing fit when he heard the door to his room open, his wife’s soft footsteps coming over beside him. Add doing a structural check for the house to the same to-do list that has the soundproofing on it, there was no way Danny was strong enough for this window to be doing that.Ī cough tore from him, feeling like knives against his already sore throat. “Now wait just a second young man-!” Maddie didn’t even get to finish her sentence before Jack heard the front door slam close with impressive force, the window pane beside him shaking from it.

“Nothing happened and no one did anything! Ugh, I’m done with this crap.” “It is bruised and crooked, why the hell won’t you tell me who did this?” Jack could practically hear the eye roll from the other room. “It isn’t nothing, Danny! Your wrist is very clearly broken, for Christ’s sake!” “There’s nothing to talk about, why is that so hard for you to understand?” Danny shot back. His wife and son were in the living room, how could he possibly hear them so loudly? Why was this his life? Jack whined pathetically into the bedroom, empty except for him.

One of these days this family really needed to invest in some soundproof coating or something. Jack just groaned as shoved his head further under his pillow. “Why won’t you just talk to us?” Maddie yelled back, similar frustration in her tone. “It’s nothing, okay?” Danny shouted, exasperated.

Anxiety by Danny Winter