Chapter Text
TK is in no hurry to go home after he leaves the police station. When his uber finally pulls up at the house and he sees a light on inside, he knows there’s no way he can keep this from his dad.
He sighs, thanks his driver, and trudges up to the door.
“Is there something you’d like to tell me?” Owen asks once TK is inside. His tone is level, masking whatever disappointment TK is sure he’s feeling.
TK considers whether he can make it to his room without letting his dad see his face.
“The sergeant at APD called me. I introduced myself when we got into town and she’s a lovely woman. She called me because she thought I would like to know her officers had arrested my son. She didn’t have all of the details but she thought it was something to do with a bar fight and possible drunk and disorderly charges.”
“I wasn’t drunk,” TK quickly corrects his dad. “I didn’t drink. I blew zero-point-zero, you can check the records.”
TK watches some of the tension leave his dad’s shoulders. “And the rest of it?”
He steps out of the shadows and lets his dad see his face. His eye is throbbing and his lip stings, he can only imagine how much of a mess he looks.
“Jesus, TK,” Owen says.
“They didn’t press charges, it’s fine.”
“Fine?” Owen asks. “Nothing about this is fine, TK. What are you doing getting into bar fights? What are you doing going to bars by yourself in the first place?”
“I just wanted to feel something,” he admits. “I was worked up and I wasn’t going to relapse again, so I just...” he trails off with a shrug.
“You went looking for a fight. For the adrenaline high.”
“I guess, yeah,” he shrugs, wincing from the movement of his bruised torso.
“What are we going to do, TK?” Owen asks, exasperated.
“I don’t know, Dad.” TK hates the way his voice shakes as he steps into his dad’s outstretched arms.
“Get some sleep, we’ll talk about this in the morning.”