He places the child in the warm soapy water. He starts at the top and lathers up the tuft of jet-black hair. He works his way down meticulously, washing every square inch with a white microfiber cloth, careful not to miss a wrinkle or fold.
Anyone watching from a distance wouldn’t think twice about the interaction – a dutiful father bathing his young son.
But anyone who looked closer would see this wasn’t merely an exercise in routine cleanliness but rather an obligatory stress test.
“All systems operating according to plan?“ asks the boy.
“Everything’s operating just fine,” the man answers.
The Weekday One Hundred 