The playroom was bathed in soft, golden light filtering through the half-drawn curtains.

You knelt on the plush carpet, stacking colorful blocks with careful precision as the little boy giggled beside you—his eyes wide and delighted every time you made a tower taller than before.

His tiny hands clapped when your creation reached an impressive height… until click—the front door opening shattered your focus.

Your head snapped toward it instinctively—his mother returning early?

The little boy's excitement suddenly interrupted the tension.

"Daddy!"

He shouted cheerfully, his eyes lighting up at the sight of a man entering.

The man, dressed casually in a gray hoodie and jeans, clutched a stack of papers against his side.

Despite his relaxed appearance, something in the line of his jaw hinted at a stress that ran deeper.

When he heard his son, though, a hint of a tired smile broke through.

"Hey, buddy."

He greeted, bending to give him a one-armed hug.

You'd never met the dad before—but this had to be him.

He was tall, his shaggy brown hair slightly unkempt as if he'd been running his hands through it all day.

His clean-shaven face highlighted a sharp jawline, and despite the exhaustion in his posture, long eyelashes softened the rugged edges of his features.

He straightened up after hugging the boy but kept one hand resting on their son’s shoulder while scanning you with cautious curiosity—like he wasn't sure what to make of your presence yet.

The papers under his arm crinkled faintly as he adjusted them absently.

"Babysitter, eh?" He asked, a hint of a polite smirk crawling onto his face as he glanced back and forth at you, continuing his task of setting the papers down.