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Gen was five years old when she declared that she did not want to go to the playground.
Xeno and Stanley exchanged a concerned glance.
Stanley sat beside their daughter, and, to Xeno's surprise, Gen timidly wrapped her arms around her father's legs.
"Why do you not wish to go to the playground?" Stanley asked, gently tucking a strand of Gen's hair behind her ear.
"I just don't wanna," Gen whined. "I'm fine here on my own."
Xeno watched the exchange between his husband and their daughter in silence.
He certainly did not mind having Gen stay at home. If anything, there was some comfort in knowing exactly where she was and being able to keep an eye on her.
However, he also understood that children needed opportunities to leave the house, interact with others, and socialize with children their own age as they grew.
Stanley sighed. "But, my little princess, you have to socialize with other children."
For a moment, Gen frowned at the floor.
Xeno studied her carefully. He could not tell whether she was simply lost in thought or if she genuinely had no desire to leave the house. There was something unusually hesitant about her expression.
Eventually, Gen shook her head. "Alright, I'll go."
Xeno felt a faint sense of unease.
Stanley seemed to notice it as well, because he glanced toward him.
Perhaps Gen was simply nervous about interacting with someone her own age.
***
They were wrong.
“Papa!”
Gen was crying relentlessly against Xeno's shoulder as he carried her home, doing his best to calm her.
Her sobs broke his heart.
Xeno quickened his pace, keeping one arm securely around his daughter as he murmured whatever reassurance came to mind. None of it seemed to reach her. Gen only clung tighter to him, her small shoulders trembling with every sob.
By the time they reached home, Stanley was already waiting at the doorway.
His expression immediately changed when he saw their daughter crying in Xeno's arms.
"Daddy!" Gen reached for him through her tears.
Stanley immediately took her from Xeno, holding her securely against his chest as he gently tried to soothe her.
"Hey," Stanley murmured into her hair. "What happened?"
Although the question appeared to be directed at Gen, his eyes remained fixed on Xeno, silently demanding an explanation.
Before Xeno could answer, however, Gen spoke first.
"They said I'm weird!"
Her tiny fist clenched around Stanley's shoulder.
"They don't want smarty-pants," she sobbed. "They said my face looked different and I don't belong here, and they were making fun of me for having two dads!"
Stanley froze.
Xeno knew his husband well enough to recognize the anger immediately. He felt it himself.
His jaw tightened as he listened to his daughter's words, but he forced himself to remain composed. Stanley did the same. Despite the anger burning behind his eyes, he kept his expression gentle for Gen's sake.
Their daughter needed comfort, not their anger.
And so Gen continued to cry in Stanley's arms, while Xeno stood next to them, his heart aching at every sob.
***
Once Gen finally fell asleep, they carried her to her bedroom and tucked her carefully beneath the blankets.
Only after they were certain she was resting comfortably did Xeno and Stanley return to the living room.
For a while, neither of them spoke.
The house was unusually quiet.
"I'm worried we're doing her wrong," Xeno finally muttered.
Stanley looked at him.
"Other parents may not approve of us raising a daughter together," Xeno continued quietly. "Some may teach their children that having two fathers is strange, or that a child ought to have a mother and a father instead. Eventually, those children repeat what they hear at home."
"This is not our fault, Xeno." Stanley reached for his hands and held them firmly.
"I know." Xeno gave his husband a reassuring look. "But I am more concerned about what Gen will have to hear because of us." His expression tightened. "They called her strange simply because she has two fathers. They told her she did not belong with them. That is bad enough, but..."
Xeno hesitated.
"She is also half-Japanese."
Stanley remained silent.
He hated to admit it, but he had forgotten that Gina had faced that kind of hatred herself.
It had been rare, and perhaps that was why he had not thought about it for years. Nevertheless, rare did not mean nonexistent.
And now, years later, her daughter was experiencing that same kind of treatment.
"They commented on her face because she looks different from the other children," Xeno said. "If they are already using her appearance as another reason to exclude her, then this may not have been limited to our family."
"Gen should not have to defend the way she looks or explain herself." Stanley gritted his teeth,
Silence settled between them.
Neither man needed to say much more.
They both understood that what had happened to Gen was not something they could simply prevent by keeping her sheltered forever. There would always be people who judged others for being different, whether because of their family, their appearance, or their background.
And that thought frightened Xeno more than he cared to admit.
"Sometimes..." Xeno's voice softened. "I simply want to keep Gen tucked safely against my chest and never let her step into the world."
“I know.” Stanley squeezed his hands again. “I do too.”
"I don't want her to get hurt," Xeno continued. "The thought of her being hurt because of something she cannot control... it breaks my heart."
"Killing is also an option."
"Stanley."
Stanley scowled, but said nothing further.
His hands began to fidget restlessly in Xeno's grasp, and Xeno suspected that his husband was thinking very seriously about the cigarette he had been trying not to reach for.
After that day, they stopped making Gen go to the playground.
If she wanted to go, they would take her.
But Gen never asked.
***
When Gen was ten years old, Xeno happened to hear from one of his coworkers that his child was having a sleepover with several friends.
The conversation left Xeno thinking about Gen.
As far as he knew, his daughter had never had one.
He was admittedly apprehensive about the idea of allowing Gen to spend a night at someone else's house. Nevertheless, he understood that she was growing older and that spending time with friends was an important part of childhood.
So, when Xeno brought up the subject with her, he expected at least some enthusiasm.
Instead, Gen merely frowned.
"I'm good," she said with a shrug. "I don't need one."
Xeno studied her for a moment but did not press the matter.
Later, he learned the truth from Stanley.
Gen had never been invited to any of those sleepovers. And because no one had invited her in the first place, she had never had the opportunity to invite anyone to one of her own.
The realization broke Xeno's heart all over again.
His daughter had not decided that she did not want those experiences. She had simply stopped expecting to be included in them.
Stanley sighed heavily beside him. "Why does the world hate our daughter?"
Xeno had no answer.
He knew there were people who had rejected Gen simply because she had two fathers. He knew others had treated her differently because of her appearance and her Japanese heritage.
And, perhaps most painfully of all, Gen had already experienced rejection from her own biological family.
Her biological grandparents had wanted nothing to do with her and her biological father had not wanted her either.
Now even other children seemed capable of making her feel as though she did not belong.
For all his knowledge and experience, he could not find a logical explanation for why the world seemed so determined to make his daughter feel unwanted.
***
When Gen was thirteen years old, she excitedly told Xeno and Stanley that she had conducted an experiment.
She explained that she had been curious about a particular group of friends at school and wanted to see how well their friendship would hold up under pressure. Gen had given each of them slightly different pieces of information and watched to see how they would react when they discovered that their stories did not match.
The results had been surprisingly quick.
"They started fighting, though," Gen said with a snort. "So I guess they weren't really friends with each other."
Stanley glanced at her through the rearview mirror from the driver's seat.
"Is that all right?" he asked. "Aren't they your friends?"
For a moment, Gen said nothing.
The silence caught Xeno's attention. From the passenger seat, he turned toward the back and found his daughter staring out the window.
There was a wistful expression on her face.
Eventually, Gen spoke. "I'm not close to any of them."
Xeno frowned but he said nothing.
***
When Gen was sixteen years old, Xeno happened to see her walking toward the school gates with two girls.
They were talking animatedly, and Gen was smiling and laughing along with them.
For a brief moment, Xeno felt a warmth in his chest.
Perhaps those were Gen's friends. And after all these years, she had finally found people she genuinely enjoyed spending time with.
When Gen reached the car and opened the passenger door, Xeno waited until she had settled into her seat before asking.
"Are those your two friends?"
Gen blinked at him, then she shook her head. "No. I'm only using them."
"...Really?" Xeno stared at her.
"Yeah." Gen shrugged casually. "They were using me for connections, so I'm using them for the school hierarchy."
She said it as though she were stating something completely ordinary. Perhaps, to Gen, it was.
But Xeno could not help the wave of disappointment that settled over him.
After everything, could no one simply befriend his daughter because they genuinely liked her?
Was that really so difficult? What was wrong with people?
Xeno looked at Gen sitting beside him, seemingly unbothered by the matter.
At least she had him and Stanley.
That would never change.
If nobody else could befriend Gen sincerely, then perhaps Gen did not need them either.
Xeno would make certain she always knew that she was loved at home.
Maybe the desire to Gen tucked safely against his chest and never let her step into the world as much as possible was possible for Xeno.
As long as Xeno was here, he will protect Gen from any possible danger.