A long, long time ago, on a sofa far, far away

You know, baby…

One night, a long, long time ago, long before any heartbreaks, before kids, before rings of power…

There was an evening. Same as any other, at least at the start.

We were sitting on the couch, probably watching TV, when her phone rang. It was her dad.

Now, the two of them never got along all that well. Far too similar in far too many ways. So it was unsurprising when things got a little bit heated. Sad, but… normal enough.

Up until I heard the word “whore“ coming across the line, anyways.

Even she was stunned—by the word itself, and by what happened next.

I took the phone from her.

And I calmly explained to her father that if he ever called her that again… even hinted at it…

There would be consequences.

I'm not a violent man. But as he'd just demonstrated, there are more ways to harm someone than fists.

And while I don't normally like those ways, either, and only see them as a last resort—

Babe.

Nobody messes with my girl.

Nobody.

And that will never not be true.

Just so you know.

Love you.
Hope you're alright.
Me.

PS—In all the years since, he has never repeated the accusation.
Just… so you know.