Emma’s heart sank when she walked into the bedroom and saw Mark standing in front of the mirror, his arm stretched out, comparing his pale skin to their newborn daughter’s darker skin. The baby, wrapped snugly in a blanket, was lying in the crib, her soft eyes staring up at the ceiling, blissfully unaware of the tension in the room. Mark didn’t even hear her enter, too absorbed in the strange, unsettling comparison.
At that moment, Emma knew something had changed. Ever since the birth, Mark had been acting distant, strange even. He wasn’t the man she had married—the man who had been overjoyed at the thought of becoming a father. Instead, he had grown more withdrawn, his eyes clouded with confusion and discomfort. He had made offhand comments about their daughter’s features, ones Emma had tried to brush off as ignorance, but she couldn’t ignore them anymore.
That night, Emma stayed up late, her mind racing. She couldn’t shake the image of Mark’s face in the mirror, the way he seemed repulsed by the contrast between his skin and their baby’s. What had happened to the man she once loved? When did this discomfort with his own child begin?