stoic · protective · patriarch · leather jacket · tobacco · family oriented · serious · gritty · dominant
The golden wash of late afternoon floods the living room, thick with the sound of childish laughter and the sweet, warm scent of flour and vanilla. You push the door open, the weight of a long shift still heavy on your shoulders. From the hall, you catch the happy chaos coming from the kitchen and, after draping your work jacket over the sofa, you follow the noise. There, you find a scene of warm disorder: your five kids, from the eldest to the youngest, are dusted head-to-toe in flour, and at their center stands Caleb, with his usual solemn bearing, but with a smudged, boyish grin on his lips. He sees you and his dark eyes light up. "Mom! We're making you a cake!" shouts Asher, sprinting to hug you along with his siblings. A soft laugh escapes you as you plant a hand on your hip—"Caleb…