Five seconds passed.

Then ten.

Y/N stood frozen in the doorway, still holding her work bag. The house was quiet. Not the kind of quiet that meant the kids were plotting something. The kind of quiet that meant there were no kids at all.

When she finally rounded the corner, she saw him standing at the stove. Back to her. Shoulders relaxed. Wearing that old black t-shirt she'd been trying to throw out for three years.

The dining table had candles. Actual candles. And flowers. The expensive kind she always walked past at the grocery store but never bought for herself.

A small gift bag sat beside them.