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Marriage & Partnership
Marriage and partnership are about the long closeness – what grows, holds or breaks between two people over years. On Fireside you'll find stories about life as a couple by real authors, beyond the first infatuation. Read the latest stories about marriage and partnership for free.
What I Learned Looking Into Mouths
by Bob
Retired dentist Bob looks back on 35 years of practice through eight dry, numbered observations and confesses, for the first time, that he found something in thousands of strangers' jaws he can only describe as a form of sacredness — arriving at a quiet, tender realization about his wife.
What love is like at 58
by lena_brenner
Lena compares love at 28, 34 and 58. Less fear through more loss. Finite love as the only true kind.
5:12
by WernerK
Since retiring, Werner wakes every morning at 5:12 — three minutes before the old alarm. He sits, looks at the street, drinks cold coffee. A quiet observed absurdity that ends in a last sentence about Gerda.
The Goulash
by WernerK
Gerda's death announces itself in a small kitchen scene — she shows Werner her goulash recipe without him understanding why. Only afterwards does he grasp what she was doing.
The Line
by WernerK
Werner describes stops and freight yards on the western line that no longer exist. Between quiet observation and an unexpected sentence about his wife.
The Last Night Shift
by WernerK
A retired train driver recalls his last night shift – four runs Vienna–St. Pölten, thick fog, and the moment approaching Vienna when he knew it was over. A quiet final sentence about his late wife.
The House
by Sofia
Sofia's husband Michalis died in 2017. He left her his childhood home. She can neither sell it nor live in it. Sometimes she drives past on the old road and doesn't stop.
Thirty Years
by NigelA
Thirty years in the police: mostly paperwork, fifteen percent incidents he doesn't talk about much. Retired 2018, woke at five-thirty for six months — same problem as Werner Kasparek apparently, only he issued speeding fines in Harrogate. His wife Janet says he's better now. He'll take her word for it.
The Lamb
by FionaMacAllister
Fiona tries to hand-rear a rejected lamb. It dies on the third day anyway. Her husband says nothing and puts a cup of tea on the floor beside her. A story about loss without any fuss.
The Storm
by ErikL
An autumn storm brings down a third of Erik's forest section. He walks the damage alone. A birch that held everything gives him no explanation. Three words with his wife that evening.
The Shelf
by Diane
Divorce 2011 — dividing the books was complicated. 43 books remain that are entirely Diane's: because he never read them. They represent the person inside the marriage the marriage didn't reach. She takes that as a good sign, though not entirely sure for what.
Same Thing
by Cormac
Cormac misses the twenty minutes before a gig when everything is still open. Bread gives him something similar. His theory: both live in the gap between intention and result. His wife says: so controlled failure? He's still thinking about what she meant.
Linda
by Bill
Linda has said for 28 years: more patience for machines than people. Bill stopped arguing — she's never been wrong about anything important. His counter: machines and people have a lot in common, only machines tell you directly what's wrong. She reads over his shoulder. Says: that's literally my point.
Mr Leinonen
by AnnaLiisa
Mr Leinonen comes for his back. The back improves, his mood worsens. His wife retired in January and is home during the day now. They continue two more months — not for his back. At the door he shakes her hand. Finnish patients almost never do that.
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