a/n: general fluff about Kai being a dad. slight themes of running away, but it is resolved.
out of all of the creeps, Kai would be the least likely to do well with children. but what if he was the best single dad ever?
in another reality, he and Genevieve had a son, Dakota, but she was far too immature to be a parent, so he assumed full responsibility. He took full custody of Dakota, essentially learning how to care for him from infancy to his current age of 10.
nonetheless, he is actively working to take care of both of their needs. he and Dakota live in a small town, in a cute little house tucked in the corner of a Midwest dream. Kai works manual labor, mostly as a commercial electrician, but on the side does mechanic work.
Dakota favors both of his biological parents equally, except with big brown eyes that bring out his boyish cuteness. he is very smart for his age, quite perceptive, and sometimes even takes Kai off guard. i'd think it would be very cute if Kai gave him the nickname Koda :)
Because of Kai's past, he is kind of a helicopter parent. like, he makes sure that Dakota knows his full name, address, what city and state they live in, but he is always hesitant when he wants to do sleepovers and is constantly worried about anyone picking on his son. especially as he grows up, he always wants to know if Dakota has gotten in any fights or any type of trouble at school, which he never does, but it doesn't ever curb his father's anxieties.
though Kai never has a hard time telling his son how much he loves him and is as active as he can be in his school and home life, he is still busy working his jobs to provide for him. at some point, when Koda is 6, he takes the bus while Kai is at work and tries to run away. he feels that his dad does not care about him, and he is grappling with the fact that his mother does not care about him. she never took the time to see him since he was born. luckily, Whitney decided to take the bus and saw Koda sitting at the bus stop shelter, sweating from the humid Kansas heat. she was out shopping and happened to have a pack of water. she breaks off one, handing it, saying something of the effect of, "you look like you need this more than me." after Koda chugs the water, Whitney can get him to open up about why he is randomly at the bus stop alone. it is not common for children to wander with a parent or alone in general. he explains his situation, and she offers reassurance. eventually, the next bus comes, and she asks if he would like to be accompanied home. reluctantly, he handed her a piece of paper, surprising her until she realized that it was his address. "my dad will be less mad that i didn't say where i live."
they arrived at his house about the same time as Kai was getting off, looking confused at the pair. after an explanation and a tight hug, Kai invites Whitney in for dinner.
side note, at any parent-teacher conference or really anytime Kai is out, all the other parents are lowkey hounding him. he is the dreamy, divorced dad!!!!!!!!
