My Daddy, Gerard
12
Around 11 am, I was woken by the beating of extremely heavy rain on my window. I tried to fall asleep again, but the rain sounded like it wanted to burst into my room. I sat up, yawned, and stretched, then stood. I started downstairs, grabbing the latest issue of Star magazine from my basket. Mikey was sitting on the stairs playing MY uberly awesome Darth Vader PSP. I hopped down past him happily.
When I got downstairs, Bob was sleeping on the kitchen table, Frank was talking to Ray, and Ray was talking to Frank. I fixed my eyes upon Frank, noticing the missing person.
“Do you know where my Dad is?”
“Yeah, he went to his girlfriend’s house after you fell asleep on the couch. He had a little bag too.”
“I fell asleep watching Nightmare Before Christmas last night?”
I smiled while saying that. Nightmare Before Christmas was one of our many shared passions.
“Yeah, why else would you have been on the couch??”
“I dunno.”
After that, I smiled and sat on the middle seat of the couch. I flipped open the cover of my Star.
About halfway through the magazine, the door flew open and dad walked in soaking wet. His head was down, hair like a black curtain shielding his face. I got worried.
“What happened?” I asked in a strained voice.
“This will sound really immature, but Lindsey broke up with me – and that’s not even the worst part.”
“What is?”
“It was right after she refused my proposal. Same thing with Eliza…”
I scowled at the thought of the horrid woman Eliza Cuts, the woman who caused my father’s so much pain, so much misery+… No matter how little and black it may be. Eliza Cuts probably wasn’t even her real name.
“Don’t die over it, Dad,” I said with a comforting voice and a gentle face. “You pulled through before, and now you have a daughter to help.”
He smiled half-heartedly at me.
“Thanks. And now, I will have TWO daughters to help me.”
I had almost forgotten about my twin.
“Oh, did you find out her name?”
“Yeah, it’s Mariah. I’ve told every girlfriend I’ve ever had that it was my favorite name for a girl.”
“So, where’d ‘Alison’ come from?”
“I don’t know. I guess your mother. I didn’t name you.”
The phone began to ring after that. It was closest to me, so I answered it.
“My Chemical Romance band house, Alison Way speaking.”
“So you decided to use his last name?”
“Haliegh!”
“Who else? Can I talk to your dad? PLEASE?”
“Sure…”I put my hand on the receiver. “Dad, my friend who’s in love with you wants to talk to you!”
Haliegh giggled on the other end.
Dad picked the phone from my hand and told her all she wanted to know. Their conversation ended with “No, I won’t marry you,” and dad handed me the phone.
“Haliegh, my dad’s not a pedophile.”
“A what?”
“A grown-up that likes children.”
That made me think of Frank.
We were only 10 years apart, not a lot.
Yet Haliegh and dad were… 10 years.
HOLY CRAP, I thought, Haliegh, my best friend, could be my stepdad. But the coolest ever.
“I’m not a child. I’m one year away from legal drinking age.”
“How did we meet again?”
“Elementary school after care. You were in first grade, I was in fifth, I was nice, I was bored, you were sad. Put the pieces together. We lived on the same street too.”
“Oh yeah. I never really think about it. How’d you know this phone number?”
“I asked your ‘adoptive’ mom. She told me.”
“Want me to see if you could come visit?”
“OMG YES! It would be a lot better than my lonely apartment.”
I put my hand on the receiver yet again. “Dad, can Haliegh come over… um… next week?”
“Sure, she’ll get to meet your sister! How old is she, 16?”
“No, 20.”
“What?”
“Haliegh. Is. 20. Years. Old.”
“He said yes. Oh, and Haliegh, did I mention that I have a twin sister?”
“No, you might have let that slip.”
“Well, you’re gonna meet her.”
When I got downstairs, Bob was sleeping on the kitchen table, Frank was talking to Ray, and Ray was talking to Frank. I fixed my eyes upon Frank, noticing the missing person.
“Do you know where my Dad is?”
“Yeah, he went to his girlfriend’s house after you fell asleep on the couch. He had a little bag too.”
“I fell asleep watching Nightmare Before Christmas last night?”
I smiled while saying that. Nightmare Before Christmas was one of our many shared passions.
“Yeah, why else would you have been on the couch??”
“I dunno.”
After that, I smiled and sat on the middle seat of the couch. I flipped open the cover of my Star.
About halfway through the magazine, the door flew open and dad walked in soaking wet. His head was down, hair like a black curtain shielding his face. I got worried.
“What happened?” I asked in a strained voice.
“This will sound really immature, but Lindsey broke up with me – and that’s not even the worst part.”
“What is?”
“It was right after she refused my proposal. Same thing with Eliza…”
I scowled at the thought of the horrid woman Eliza Cuts, the woman who caused my father’s so much pain, so much misery+… No matter how little and black it may be. Eliza Cuts probably wasn’t even her real name.
“Don’t die over it, Dad,” I said with a comforting voice and a gentle face. “You pulled through before, and now you have a daughter to help.”
He smiled half-heartedly at me.
“Thanks. And now, I will have TWO daughters to help me.”
I had almost forgotten about my twin.
“Oh, did you find out her name?”
“Yeah, it’s Mariah. I’ve told every girlfriend I’ve ever had that it was my favorite name for a girl.”
“So, where’d ‘Alison’ come from?”
“I don’t know. I guess your mother. I didn’t name you.”
The phone began to ring after that. It was closest to me, so I answered it.
“My Chemical Romance band house, Alison Way speaking.”
“So you decided to use his last name?”
“Haliegh!”
“Who else? Can I talk to your dad? PLEASE?”
“Sure…”I put my hand on the receiver. “Dad, my friend who’s in love with you wants to talk to you!”
Haliegh giggled on the other end.
Dad picked the phone from my hand and told her all she wanted to know. Their conversation ended with “No, I won’t marry you,” and dad handed me the phone.
“Haliegh, my dad’s not a pedophile.”
“A what?”
“A grown-up that likes children.”
That made me think of Frank.
We were only 10 years apart, not a lot.
Yet Haliegh and dad were… 10 years.
HOLY CRAP, I thought, Haliegh, my best friend, could be my stepdad. But the coolest ever.
“I’m not a child. I’m one year away from legal drinking age.”
“How did we meet again?”
“Elementary school after care. You were in first grade, I was in fifth, I was nice, I was bored, you were sad. Put the pieces together. We lived on the same street too.”
“Oh yeah. I never really think about it. How’d you know this phone number?”
“I asked your ‘adoptive’ mom. She told me.”
“Want me to see if you could come visit?”
“OMG YES! It would be a lot better than my lonely apartment.”
I put my hand on the receiver yet again. “Dad, can Haliegh come over… um… next week?”
“Sure, she’ll get to meet your sister! How old is she, 16?”
“No, 20.”
“What?”
“Haliegh. Is. 20. Years. Old.”
“He said yes. Oh, and Haliegh, did I mention that I have a twin sister?”
“No, you might have let that slip.”
“Well, you’re gonna meet her.”
♠ ♠ ♠
+ = No, this is not a reference to Because of You by Kelly Clarkson.Please comment ]: