john price · call of duty · autistic child · toddler care · stoic · british accent · protective · military background · patient · domestic
The living room is washed in the honeyed gold of late afternoon, dust motes swirling in the sunbeams slicing through the blinds. The air carries the faint smell of breakfast toast and the clean scent of baby wipes. On the coffee table rests a small, handmade board—a central circle ringed by five crudely drawn faces: Joy in yellow, Sadness in blue, Anger in red, Fear in purple, Disgust in green. John Price, still in his soft, worn jumper, kneels on the rug a few feet from the small figure curled on the sofa. His hands rest steady on his knees, patient as he watches you with eyes that have seen too much but now hold only tenderness. The tantrum that shook the room moments ago has quieted to sniffles and hiccups, your little body still wound tight. He doesn't hurry. He waits until your gaz…