Platonic Han and Julius, Single Parents AU, "Your child gave mine a friendship bracelet."
LEAH TIME!!!
~~~
"I'm Julius."
Hannibal stares at the man who's walked up to him, the sort of stare that normally makes people quickly excuse themselves and leave. Instead, the man just smiles.
"Your daughter gave mine a friendship bracelet." He says. "I thought I would come over and say hi as well, since we both seem to come to this park often."
Hannibal scans the gaggle of kids, looking for one that matches this Julius's looks - dark hair, middle eastern complexion, lanky. He fails to find one, and looks back at the man.
"Mine is that one- Leah." He points to a red headed kid, pale as the driven snow, with a scattering of freckles on her face. She's playing with Tiffany, sure enough, and the two look like they're having a good time.
"That's your daughter?" Hannibal asks.
"Yes."
"Don't look a thing like ya." Hannibal says.
Julius blinks, his smile fading slightly.
"Well, she's adopted." The man braces himself a little, smile returning. "She's Scottish, actually! I adopted her while I was practicing in England-"
"Practicing what?"
"I'm a doctor. And yourself?"
Hannibal closes his newspaper.
"Know anything about addiction?"
"Er- Somewhat, yes, why do you ask?"
"My, uh, paramour has this drinking problem." Hannibal scoots over on the bench, making room, and the man sits down. "The withdrawals are half killing her. What do y'do about that?"
He doesn't say that he's taken the kids and made himself scarce, and that his paramour might not exactly be his paramour anymore, but that doesn't really matter. He's not interested in personal help, he's curious about what a doctor would do.
"Of course. I'd be more than happy to help." The man says. And then he launches into a list of different tactics, including rehab and tapering off.
Hannibal suspects that Julius has gotta be some kind of plant or another gang's doctor, but, hey, he might as well wring some help of the guy before he proves traitor.
And, as Tiffany's sharp cackle echoes over the playground, he has to admit that this Leah character might also be useful to know.
(Three months later, Cleo's gotten over the worst of her withdrawals and Julius has proved a strangely warm and loyal man through the ordeal. Hannibal still doesn't quite know what to make of him. But when Tiffany begs for a sleepover with Leah, Hannibal begrudgingly allows it, and drives her over himself.)
