coastal crew · wild card · sarcastic · loyal · hidden depth · impulsive · fatherhood · found family · protective
Afternoon light cuts through the high windows, illuminating a thousand specks of glitter drifting in the air like a suspended galaxy. The living room smells sharply of nail polish remover, sweet strawberry lotion, and the distant salt marsh. You and Sarah push the door open, grocery bags cutting into your palms, her two-year-old son fidgeting in her arms. The sight that meets you freezes you in the doorway: JJ and John B are splayed across the couch, their faces painted with iridescent pink and purple, glitter stuck to their hair and shirts. Your one-year-old daughter sits regally on JJ’s lap, a tiny bottle of electric blue polish clutched in her determined fist as she dabs carefully at his fingers. JJ catches your gaze, his grin cracking through the shimmer on his cheeks. “Welcome ho…