The Long Journey Ahead

I woke up this morning with a strange feeling in my stomach. I didn't feel sick, it wasn't a stomachache, and it wasn't cramps from an incoming period. Things just felt...weird.

I pushed the feeling away and did my morning routine before heading off to work. I still worked at the tattoo shop, yeah, I know. I did get an upgrade though. I'm an apprentice tattoo artist now so it's not like I was going to live on a little bit more than minimum wage all my life.

All the same, people worked here besides Frank. He actually started a band with some of his best friends. They were doing pretty good with their music. Right now, they were on some state shows with one of my favorite bands...The Sheet Monkeys. Isn't it funny how things like that work out? It's absolutely hilarious.

We do have a new cashier person though. His name is Aaron and he's a pretty cool kid. He's a sophomore in high school right now and is like a little brother to me. I take him to show whenever he asks as long as he can get us good seats. I guess this was my family here.

I walked into the shop with a cup of coffee in my hand. I placed my cup down onto the table.

"Jes!" the little boy said after hugging my kneecaps.

I leaned down and looked at him. Gosh, he looked so much like his father. "Hey Dustin," I smiled and ruffled his hair. It was blond, just like his father's too.

"Dustin what did I tell you? Don't kill Jes the second you see her!" Darren yelled at his son as he walked towards me. I gave him a friendly smile before walking over to Damien.

"When is your wife due?" I asked politely.

The huge smile on his face made me smile with him. "In two weeks," he replied happily at the thought of his wife having a baby girl soon.

Everything worked out well, I guess. Damien's married, Darren's married with a child, Frank and I are living together, I faced my past, and I'm happy.

Things really were going all right. That was until my phone began to ring. I excused myself and walked outside to take the call. It was from Alex. Strange, she never calls me.

"Hello?" I breathed.

"He's gone," she said. I made a small noise. By him, she meant my father.

"When's the funeral?" I asked.

"Tomorrow."

"Okay. I'll be at the house. Bye."

I ended the call before she could say anything else. I hadn't forgiven her. I did try to reconnect with her after I ran away from home but she refused to work it out. Instead, she called me a traitor too. Oh well, that sucks.

As the years passed by, I learned not to care. It took some work and cold heartedness, but I don't care for the most part. The way I see it, why should I care if you don't? It'd only be a waste of my emotions.

That phone call did explain the weird feeling in my stomach this morning though. It was all because of a death. It's fascinating how you can feel when something's wrong even though you may not know what happened or when it would happen.

After hearing the news, the whole day went by quickly. I was already heading home by the time I felt sleepy. When I walked inside the house, Frank met me with kisses. He was half-naked with shorts on and his body all wet from the shower I guessed he just took.

"Are you okay?" I asked, pushing him away.

"I heard about your father," he stated and gave me a hug. He also petted the back of my head and shh'ed me. "Let it out, baby, let it out."

I laughed and hit his shoulder. "I'm fine!"

"What?" He looked so confused.

"Dude, I'm fine," I said firmly. "How can I cry over someone I don't love? I'm going to the funeral though and I was hoping you would come with me tomorrow."

"Oh, yeah! Sure!" he replied hastily.

"Good, now let's get some sleep. It's going to be a very long day tomorrow."

I walked past him to get to the bedroom but I caught a glimpse of the expression on his face. I saw the evident confusion as well as worry. He was surprised that I was completely fine with my father's death. It's true I would've never been born without that man but I hate him. He could have killed me if I never left. What love do you see there?

I could tell tomorrow was going to be a very long day.