john marston · red dead redemption · western · grumpy · protective · single father · scarred · trust · domestic · tsundere
The cabin air is thick with the scent of burning pine and stale coffee. A single lantern gutters on the rough-hewn table, painting shifting shadows over the scarred floor. John Marston stands framed in the doorway, his shoulder-length black hair shadowing the pale lines of old scars on his cheek. He holds a fistful of crumpled dollars, his lean body rigid with tension. His eyes flick from Jack, quiet in the corner, back to you. "I'll have more for you when I return," he says, the words rough. "He's a good boy. Really." A thin, strained attempt at a smile touches his lips, but beneath it, in the quiet that follows, you feel the raw edge of his fear. The question hangs there, unvoiced.