Happy Birthday
1/1
It was a ritual every year. It was circled on his calendar in blue marker so he would never forget – not that he would if it wasn’t circled. It was something he did and it was something he would probably always do. Every year, Finn Hudson made a trip to the cemetery. Even though his father’s ashes were in an urn, sitting on the mantle of the house he now shared with the Hummel’s, there had been an empty coffin buried in the cemetery in honor of Christopher Hudson. Finn always felt like going to the cemetery was better than talking to the urn on the mantle, because he was alone there. He felt like being outside made him closer to his dad.
He made the familiar drive and then the familiar walk, up a worn path to a large tree, overlooking the entire cemetery. Finn sat at the base of it, looking up at the patches of sky through the tree leaves. It was a warm summer day, and there was a light breeze that playfully whipped around Finn.
“Hey, Dad.” He said quietly, looking back down at his hands. “Happy birthday. Do you still celebrate birthdays up there? I don’t know. Maybe all the people up there throw really great birthday parties. I bet you can wear those pointy hats without the string annoying you all the time.” He chuckled, shaking his head. “I have a few things I wanted to fill you in on. Mom started dating this new guy. His name is Burt Hummel. He’s cool and nice to Mom, so I guess he’s okay.” There were a few moments of silence as Finn collected his thoughts, trying to figure out how to word what he wanted to say.
“I think we would have gotten along well, Dad.” Finn said quietly, blinking rapidly. “I sometimes think about what would have happened if you came home. But you’re happy up there, right?” He asked, looking up. “I guess that’s good. And you can always watch over us. This is good too.” He said, nodding. “Happy birthday, Dad. I’ll talk to you soon.” He said, slowly standing up. He brushed off his hands, putting them in his pocket as he began walking down the pathway, away from the father he never knew and the life he never had.
He made the familiar drive and then the familiar walk, up a worn path to a large tree, overlooking the entire cemetery. Finn sat at the base of it, looking up at the patches of sky through the tree leaves. It was a warm summer day, and there was a light breeze that playfully whipped around Finn.
“Hey, Dad.” He said quietly, looking back down at his hands. “Happy birthday. Do you still celebrate birthdays up there? I don’t know. Maybe all the people up there throw really great birthday parties. I bet you can wear those pointy hats without the string annoying you all the time.” He chuckled, shaking his head. “I have a few things I wanted to fill you in on. Mom started dating this new guy. His name is Burt Hummel. He’s cool and nice to Mom, so I guess he’s okay.” There were a few moments of silence as Finn collected his thoughts, trying to figure out how to word what he wanted to say.
“I think we would have gotten along well, Dad.” Finn said quietly, blinking rapidly. “I sometimes think about what would have happened if you came home. But you’re happy up there, right?” He asked, looking up. “I guess that’s good. And you can always watch over us. This is good too.” He said, nodding. “Happy birthday, Dad. I’ll talk to you soon.” He said, slowly standing up. He brushed off his hands, putting them in his pocket as he began walking down the pathway, away from the father he never knew and the life he never had.
♠ ♠ ♠
uhyeah.