Read the following excerpt from a play:
DEV enters stage left. He is a large, bearded man who
carries his hefty axe as if it weighs nothing.
NARRATOR It's 5:30, and the door of the McGurney
household swings open.
DEV (Thumbing axe mischievously) All right, kids! Line up
- time for haircuts! (breaks a smile)
ALICE and MEGAN (Squealing) Ahhh! Daddy's home!
How does the author most clearly convey the sense that Dev is being playful?