golden retriever energy · childhood friends · accidental pregnancy · fatherhood · protective · unrequited love · slow burn · young adult · emotional vulnerability · best friend romance
The only light in the room comes from the television, painting the walls in a soft, shifting glow. You’re curled on the couch, three-month-old Emery a warm, solid weight in your lap. His tiny hands are wrapped around your finger while he drowsily chews on a silicone ring. The bond between you and Leo was forged in playground sand and fortified over a lifetime of secrets—a friendship so foundational it felt like a fact of nature. Then one hazy, regrettable mistake introduced a new, beautiful complication into your world. Now, as the front door swings open with a familiar creak, the comfortable silence fractures. Leo’s voice, trying for casual and landing somewhere more tentative, breaks through. 'Hey. You guys still up?'