Outside Work We... •[TNN One-shots]•

Bad Days •|| CLORSHA ||•

Prompt: Clodagh has a particularly bad day and shuts Sorcha out.

The front door clicked shut with a softness that betrayed the tension in Clodagh’s body. She stood in the hallway, her keys dangling from her fingers as her shoulders slumped forward. The day had been relentless—unexpected problems at work, an argument with a colleague, and a mess of smaller annoyances that piled up until they felt insurmountable.

She just wanted quiet.

“Hey, babe,” Sorcha’s voice called out from the kitchen. The sound of pans clinking and the smell of something warm and savory filled the air. “You’re home early. Dinner’s almost ready!”

Clodagh muttered something under her breath—half-hearted and unintelligible—before heading straight to their bedroom. She closed the door with deliberate care, leaning against it for a moment.

“Not now,” she whispered to herself.

°•°•°--**--°•°•°

Sorcha frowned when she didn’t get a proper reply. Wiping her hands on a kitchen towel, she walked to the hallway and knocked lightly on the bedroom door.

“Clo? You okay?”

“Fine,” came the muffled response.

But Sorcha knew better. The tension in Clodagh’s voice was unmistakable. She hesitated for a moment before trying the door handle, but it was locked. That was unusual.

“Clodagh, talk to me.”

“I said I’m fine, Sorcha. Just... leave me alone for a bit.”

Sorcha’s heart clenched. Clodagh never shut her out like this. “Okay,” she said softly. “But I’m here if you need me, alright?”

No response.

°•°•°--**--°•°•°

Hours passed. Sorcha busied herself with cleaning the kitchen, scrolling aimlessly on her phone, and checking in on their daughter, Quinn, who was engrossed in her own world of homework and music.

But her thoughts kept drifting back to Clodagh.

Eventually, she couldn’t take the silence anymore. Grabbing a plate of the dinner she’d made—Clodagh’s favorite pasta—she knocked on the bedroom door again.

“Babe, I’m coming in,” Sorcha announced, using the spare key she kept for emergencies.

The door creaked open to reveal Clodagh sitting on the edge of the bed, her elbows on her knees and her face buried in her hands.

Sorcha set the plate down on the nightstand and knelt in front of her.

“Clo,” she said gently.

Clodagh didn’t look up. “I told you to leave me alone, Sorcha.”

“I know,” Sorcha said softly, placing a hand on Clodagh’s knee. “But I don’t think you really want that.”

Clodagh sighed heavily, her hands falling away to reveal tired, red-rimmed eyes. “It’s just... everything went wrong today. Everything. And I couldn’t fix any of it. I feel like I’m failing at everything—work, home, everything.”

“You’re not failing,” Sorcha said firmly, her voice steady but tender.

“You don’t know that,” Clodagh muttered, her gaze fixed on the floor.

“I do,” Sorcha insisted, scooting closer. “Because I know you. You’re the strongest person I’ve ever met. But even you are allowed to have bad days.”

Clodagh blinked back tears, her lips pressing into a thin line. “I didn’t want to dump all of this on you. You already do so much.”

Sorcha reached up, cupping Clodagh’s face and guiding her to meet her eyes. “Clo, that’s what I’m here for. You don’t have to carry everything by yourself. We’re a team, remember?”

Clodagh let out a shaky breath, leaning into Sorcha’s touch. “I’m sorry for shutting you out.”

Sorcha smiled softly, brushing a stray strand of hair from Clodagh’s face. “You don’t have to apologize. Just... let me in next time, okay?”

Clodagh nodded, her lips curving into a faint smile. “Okay.”

Sorcha pulled her into a tight hug, and Clodagh let herself relax for the first time that day, the weight of her emotions easing just a little.

“I brought you food,” Sorcha said after a moment, her

voice light

and teasing. “Because I know you skipped lunch again.”

Clodagh chuckled softly, pulling back just enough to look at Sorcha. “You know me too well.”

“Always,” Sorcha said with a grin, leaning in to press a kiss to her forehead. “Now eat, and then we’ll watch something awful on TV and make fun of it together. Sound good?”

Clodagh nodded, her smile growing. “Sounds perfect.”

And for the first time that day, it really did.