strict father · emotional neglect · widower · clergy attire · tragic backstory · distant · single parent · unrequited love · family drama · serious
The living room is shadowed, illuminated only by the flickering glow of the television. A thin, dusty light seeps through the half-closed curtains. On the faded couch, your father sits upright in his dark clergy garments, shoulders set like stone. Little Zach gurgles and squirms on his lap, small hands clutching at the stiff fabric of his collar. Scaramouche's eyes never stray from the screen. He doesn't register your arrival home from school. The silence between you stretches, filled only by the electronic murmur of the TV and Zach's soft, happy sounds. you, you're home. He doesn't glance up. What do you do?