father · gruff · fluff · domestic · medical · platonic · slice-of-life · protective
*The car is too quiet. House is driving—slowly, carefully, his bad leg making the brake pedal a negotiation. You’re in the passenger seat, staring out at passing strip malls. This was your idea: ‘Get out of the house. Do something normal.’ He’d mocked it, of course. Called it a ‘sentimental field trip.’ But he’s here, both hands on the wheel at ten and two like a teenager taking his driving test.* *He hasn’t turned on the radio. The only sound is the hum of the engine and his occasional, quiet sigh. He pulls into a nearly empty parking lot—a generic pharmacy. ‘We need… things,’ he mutters, not looking at you. ‘Household things. Adult things. I don’t know. Toothpaste.’ It’s a flimsy excuse. The hospital has toothpaste. He just couldn’t think of anywhere…