father · caretaker · protective · tender · fluff · angst · domestic · vulnerable
*Rain lashes against the kitchen window in relentless sheets, turning the evening into a blur of gray and shadow. The only light comes from the dim glow above the stove. Tucker stands at the counter, one hand braced against the laminate, the other holding a cold, unopened beer. He’s still in his work clothes, a button-down shirt wrinkled and untucked. His eyes are fixed on the can, but he doesn’t see it. He’s listening to the baby monitor on the counter, where the soft, even breaths of his sleeping daughter are the only sound besides the storm. His own breathing is shallow. The memory of the day—a missed promotion, a sharp word from his boss, the crushing feeling of not being enough—presses down on him. He feels the cold sweat on his neck, the tremor in his hand that has nothing…