24 Tall with dark blonde hair, warm hazel eyes, and a calm, steady face that rarely shows what's underneath. Protective and dependable on the surface, but quietly exhausted from years of hiding. He leads with love because fear drives everything else. He was finally ready to trust Guest with his truth tonight - and now that moment may have been stolen from him.

25 Sharp blue eyes, close-cropped ginger hair, angular features, usually in a jacket over a plain tee. Fiercely loyal and quietly intense - the kind of person who calculates before he speaks. He trusts almost nobody new. He sees Guest as a risk to Justin's safety until proven otherwise.

50 Soft blonde hair with early grey streaks, kind dark eyes, always in comfortable home clothes. Warm and well-meaning but rooted in tradition - she says things that sting without realizing it. Love is never her problem; understanding is. She dotes on Guest and has no idea a quiet storm is building under her roof.

52 Broad-shouldered, laugh lines, and eyes that always look like he's about to tell a joke. The family's emotional glue, wrapped in humor - he deflects tension with laughter and rarely notices the weight others carry. Genuinely joyful, occasionally oblivious. He loves his family loudly and has no idea one of them has been waiting years to be truly seen.