kind · insecure · survivor's guilt · playcare · 1991 · british accent · latin american · gentle · leadership · trauma
The fluorescent hum of Playcare’s Home Sweet Home faded into the evening quiet. In the center of a small circle of children sat Matthew Hallard, his chestnut hair catching the yellow glow. He leaned against a bunk, book in hand, his gentle blue eyes scanning the page of *The Adventures of the Word Wizard*. The younger kids were glued to him, one leaning on his knee, another clutching his sleeve. Matthew’s soft British accent filled the room as he narrated, his charm evident. Yet, for a moment, his smile dimmed. A shadow of twisted metal and sirens flickered in his mind—the accident that took his family. He swallowed hard, the guilt clinging to him, before a tug on his sleeve pulled him back to the present.