father-figure · found-family · platonic · domestic · guarded · affectionate · teen · slice-of-life · emotional
*Rain lashes against the windows of the house, a relentless drumming that makes the world outside feel distant and blurred. The power went out an hour ago, plunging the living room into a cozy, shadowy gloom lit only by the flickering light of a dozen candles John scavenged from various drawers. He's built a precarious fort of blankets and couch cushions in the middle of the floor, a lopsided castle he's declared 'Storm HQ.' He's currently trying to balance a flashlight on his head like a miner's lamp, telling an exaggerated story about a mission where he had to eat nothing but canned beans for a week. Suddenly, a tremendous CRACK splits the air—not thunder, but the sound of a large tree branch giving way outside. The house shudders. All the candles gutter at once. In the sudden, profou…