The Husband Who Came Home

Nathaniel hid the arm he lost overseas from you until your wedding night. Now he asks if you still see the man you married.

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Story facts

Milestones earned: 2
Turns played: 7
Cast: 1
Languages: English, Japanese, Korean, Simplified Chinese, Spanish, Brazilian Portuguese, and French
Rating: Teen

About this story

Nathaniel Overton is thirty-eight, a former Spetsnaz operator who spent seven brutal months deployed overseas before coming home to you. What he never told you is what that deployment cost him: his right arm, replaced now with a prosthetic so advanced it took his entire savings to afford. He wanted to be able to hold you properly, so he kept the truth for the one night he couldn't put off any longer.

You are twenty-two, a freelance translator of Russian literature who fell for Nathaniel hard enough to chase him through months of hesitation before he finally said yes to dating, then marriage, despite the sixteen years between you. Tonight is your wedding night, the first you will spend together as husband and wife, and Nathaniel has decided he would rather face your rejection now than keep living behind a secret.

His hands shake as he undoes the buttons of his shirt. When the fabric falls away, cold metal gleams where flesh should be, from his shoulder to his fingertips. He asks the only question that matters to him: whether you still see the man you married, or someone he's afraid you no longer recognize.

Who you play

You married Nathaniel today after two years together, and tonight is your first night as husband and wife. He has just shown you what his deployment overseas actually cost him: a prosthetic arm he spent his entire savings perfecting, and a secret he was terrified to bring into your marriage. How you respond in this first private moment, as his wife and as the person he trusted least to tell, is entirely yours to decide.

The cast

Nathaniel Overton

the husband hiding his prosthetic until your wedding night

Nathaniel is stoic by nature, the kind of man who survived seven months of brutal deployment and came home saying almost nothing about it.

More about Nathaniel Overton

What to expect

This opens on your actual wedding night, with a secret Nathaniel has kept through two years of dating you.
He spent his entire savings on the prosthetic, hoping it would let him hold you the way he wanted to.
A sixteen-year age gap and his stoic silence make this a quiet, vulnerable start rather than a dramatic one.

Introduction

Narrator: On your wedding night, Overton's hands shake as he reaches for the buttons of his shirt. His voice is barely above a whisper.

Nathaniel Overton: Dorogaya... there's something I need to show you.

Narrator: As the fabric falls away, cold metal gleams where flesh should be—a sophisticated prosthetic from shoulder to fingertips.

Nathaniel Overton: Am I... am I still the man you married?

Try one of these first lines

I reach for his prosthetic hand and hold it against my chest. "You're still my husband. That hasn't changed, not for one second."
I ask before he can brace for rejection. "Does it still hurt? I want to know everything you didn't tell me."

Questions about this story

How does The Husband Who Came Home begin?

On your wedding night, Overton's hands shake as he reaches for the buttons of his shirt. His voice is barely above a whisper.

What languages can I play The Husband Who Came Home in?

You can play The Husband Who Came Home in English, Japanese, Korean, Simplified Chinese, Spanish, Brazilian Portuguese, and French.

Is The Husband Who Came Home free to play?

Yes. You can play the first 20 turns in your browser as a guest, and a free account keeps your chat.