Member-only story
The Silent Marriage Killer
How Household Division Impacts Love & Sex in Modern Relationships
She washed the last plate and checked the clock. 11:37 PM. Another day ending with her hands in soapy water while Ryan scrolled through his phone in bed. Lauren dried her hands on the dish towel that needed washing — another mental note for tomorrow — and leaned against the counter, suddenly too tired to even walk to the bedroom.
This wasn’t what she’d signed up for. Or maybe it was, and she just hadn’t read the fine print.
“Coming to bed?” Ryan’s voice floated from the bedroom, casual and expectant.
Lauren stared at the gleaming kitchen. She’d deep-cleaned it Sunday, and somehow by Thursday it looked like they’d hosted a dinner party for twelve. Except they hadn’t. It was just the quiet accumulation of two people existing — one cleaning up after both.
“In a minute,” she called back, her voice thin with exhaustion.
She picked up her phone. Three work emails had arrived since she’d last checked an hour ago. Her boss expecting the Henderson proposal by morning. A teammate asking for input on the Wilson account. The client who was dissatisfied with the third draft. They’d have to wait until 5 AM when she’d wake up early to tackle them before her official workday even…
