Toddlers, the hellspawn of earth. Which was unfortunately what Phillip was left with after a simple fling. Of course he cursed himself over it constantly, what man in his thirties wants to be raising a toddler alone? Not Phillip.

Raising a little hellion had its sweet moments though, when the child wasn’t bouncing off the walls or tugging on Bonzo, their English bulldog’s tail. He did love them nonetheless, hell, he even named the kid after himself, Phillip junior.

It was yet another one of those restless days, where junior just wanted to break everything in sight. Phillip however, was already at his limit, his temper so close to snapping he could practically hear it breaking inside of him. As a last resort he took the toddler to his favorite place, the dog park.

Phillip was holding Bonzo’s leash in one hand and the ecstatic toddler in the other, struggling to keep up with all the questions the curious child had about their surroundings. As he had his back turned to Bonzo, he felt a sharp tug, too quick for him to react to. So, by the time he had turned around, Bonzo was running toward the play area, causing Phillip to sprint after him.

It was an effort to get Bonzo to come back, whistling and calling his name all whilst being ignored, continuing the chase for five minutes before he gave up, taking a breather and hoping the dog would come back after a few minutes.

He sat on a bench with junior, placing him on his lap so he could see the other kids playing. He wouldn’t let him go and play too, despite his whining and sobs. He knew there were threats everywhere, something he’d picked up on in his time in the military.

Eventually, someone came walking over, holding Bonzo’s lead. He was surprised they’d even managed to grab him, considering the speed he was going around the play area. Following behind the mystery man was a rather timid looking child, clearly scared by the dog in front of them.

Phillip extended a hand, taking the leash.

“Thanks, I’m surprised you even caught him, the way he was runnin’ round.”