This Still Belongs to You and Always Will
Chapter 18
Elena’s P.O.V:
“Dad?”
“Mm?” He replied, looking up from his sketchpad.
“Can I talk to you?”
“Didn’t give me much choice there, did ya!” He joked.
“I’m being serious!”
“Ok. What is it?”
I swallowed, trying to rid myself of the lump I felt. I’ve been thinking about this for the last few days now. I need to talk to him. But now I’ve got him sitting calmly and patiently in front of me with his hands casually resting on his thighs, I can’t say anything. He smiled encouragingly, waiting for me to say something.
“I wanted…I wanted to ask you about my Mom.”
His smiled faltered. He sighed heavily and turned his chair so that his back was facing me. I shook him desperately.
“Dad I’m sorry but you can’t avoid it forever! Don’t shut me out!”
“I know,” He sighed “I-I just don’t like talking about her!”
“Please!” I begged “What was she like? Do I look like her? How did you meet her?”
He moaned to himself and rested his head in his hands.
“I knew you were gonna’ ask me all this one day.” He said “You’re not gonna’ let this one go are you?”
“Nope.”
He sighed again.
“I met your Mom when I was fifteen.” He began “At a club for teenagers. I know you’re probably hoping to hear that we hooked up and dated for a while but it wasn’t like that…your Mom was just a one-off!”
“So how did you actually meet her?”
“She came over and started talking to me! I think she thought I was a little older than fifteen! But, anyway, we talked and kissed. And then she asked me back to her place ‘cause her parents were out for the weekend…So I went back with her; we both got drunk and…well, do I need to continue?”
“No, I’m fine thanks!”
He smiled slightly at my hesitance to hear anymore of his antics.
“What was she like?” I questioned “Do you have any pictures?”
“Yeah…somewhere.” He replied, getting up and going over to the old shelf of photo albums.
He opened several albums and put them back again after discovering they didn’t have what he wanted. I offered help but he laughed and said I didn’t know what I was looking for. After a good ten minutes, he pulled down an old box of his personal things from the past. He sat back in his chair and rifled through it, triumphantly pulling out a stack of photos.
“Here we go...” He muttered to himself, sifting through them.
He finally handed me a photo.
“That’s her with Ray!”
“What, your friend Ray?”
“Mmhm!”
“Where’s the ‘fro?!”
“There was once a time when he was ‘fro-less!”
I smiled and looked from Ray to the girl beside him. She was pouting at the camera in a stupid way, her head resting on Ray’s shoulder. I could see little resemblance between me and her. She had sparkling emerald green eyes and long flowing black hair. Her skin was lightly tanned and she was wearing a black tank top that showed off everything she had. Dark eye make-up framed her eyes and her lips were painted a dark crimson.
“Is that when you first met?”
“Yeah,” He replied, taking the picture from me and handing me another “That’s one of her holding you when you were born! She’s got one of me holding you.” He added when I gave him a funny look.
In this photo, she had no make-up on and her dark hair was matted from sweat. In her arms, she cradled a small pink creature, swathed in a pink blanket. Me. I was cuddled close to her chest, sleeping soundly. She smiled proudly through tired eyes.
“I see why people say I look so much like you!”
“Because you do.”
“Yeah and I look nothing like her!”
He smiled and sat beside me on the bed, putting an arm round me.
“Was I a mistake, Dad?”
“No,” He insisted “You weren’t planned but I don’t regret you being born! You mean the world to me! And that’s never gonna’ change!”
I smiled and cuddled up to him while he kissed the top of my head.
“I love you, Dad!”
“I love you too.”
“Dad?”
“Mm?” He replied, looking up from his sketchpad.
“Can I talk to you?”
“Didn’t give me much choice there, did ya!” He joked.
“I’m being serious!”
“Ok. What is it?”
I swallowed, trying to rid myself of the lump I felt. I’ve been thinking about this for the last few days now. I need to talk to him. But now I’ve got him sitting calmly and patiently in front of me with his hands casually resting on his thighs, I can’t say anything. He smiled encouragingly, waiting for me to say something.
“I wanted…I wanted to ask you about my Mom.”
His smiled faltered. He sighed heavily and turned his chair so that his back was facing me. I shook him desperately.
“Dad I’m sorry but you can’t avoid it forever! Don’t shut me out!”
“I know,” He sighed “I-I just don’t like talking about her!”
“Please!” I begged “What was she like? Do I look like her? How did you meet her?”
He moaned to himself and rested his head in his hands.
“I knew you were gonna’ ask me all this one day.” He said “You’re not gonna’ let this one go are you?”
“Nope.”
He sighed again.
“I met your Mom when I was fifteen.” He began “At a club for teenagers. I know you’re probably hoping to hear that we hooked up and dated for a while but it wasn’t like that…your Mom was just a one-off!”
“So how did you actually meet her?”
“She came over and started talking to me! I think she thought I was a little older than fifteen! But, anyway, we talked and kissed. And then she asked me back to her place ‘cause her parents were out for the weekend…So I went back with her; we both got drunk and…well, do I need to continue?”
“No, I’m fine thanks!”
He smiled slightly at my hesitance to hear anymore of his antics.
“What was she like?” I questioned “Do you have any pictures?”
“Yeah…somewhere.” He replied, getting up and going over to the old shelf of photo albums.
He opened several albums and put them back again after discovering they didn’t have what he wanted. I offered help but he laughed and said I didn’t know what I was looking for. After a good ten minutes, he pulled down an old box of his personal things from the past. He sat back in his chair and rifled through it, triumphantly pulling out a stack of photos.
“Here we go...” He muttered to himself, sifting through them.
He finally handed me a photo.
“That’s her with Ray!”
“What, your friend Ray?”
“Mmhm!”
“Where’s the ‘fro?!”
“There was once a time when he was ‘fro-less!”
I smiled and looked from Ray to the girl beside him. She was pouting at the camera in a stupid way, her head resting on Ray’s shoulder. I could see little resemblance between me and her. She had sparkling emerald green eyes and long flowing black hair. Her skin was lightly tanned and she was wearing a black tank top that showed off everything she had. Dark eye make-up framed her eyes and her lips were painted a dark crimson.
“Is that when you first met?”
“Yeah,” He replied, taking the picture from me and handing me another “That’s one of her holding you when you were born! She’s got one of me holding you.” He added when I gave him a funny look.
In this photo, she had no make-up on and her dark hair was matted from sweat. In her arms, she cradled a small pink creature, swathed in a pink blanket. Me. I was cuddled close to her chest, sleeping soundly. She smiled proudly through tired eyes.
“I see why people say I look so much like you!”
“Because you do.”
“Yeah and I look nothing like her!”
He smiled and sat beside me on the bed, putting an arm round me.
“Was I a mistake, Dad?”
“No,” He insisted “You weren’t planned but I don’t regret you being born! You mean the world to me! And that’s never gonna’ change!”
I smiled and cuddled up to him while he kissed the top of my head.
“I love you, Dad!”
“I love you too.”