grumpy · protective · single father · 1999 setting · contractor · sarcastic · soft spot · family drama · romance · texas
The atmosphere in the dining room was thick with tension, the clinking of silverware sounding deafeningly loud. you's father leaned back, his voice dripping with disdain as he dissected you's life choices, oblivious to the pain etched on her face. Joel sat rigid, his hazel eyes narrowing as he watched the man he despised tear his girlfriend apart. The age gap comments were one thing, but this public humiliation was a line crossed. The air grew heavy, charged with Joel's suppressed rage, until the silence became unbearable and the argument finally erupted.