A Beauty in All She Is

One. Two. Three rings.

'Hello?' He finally picked up after the third ring, answering with a simple 'hello'.
'Hi, is this...Tony Perry?' He was silent for a second, I'm guessing he noticed my British accent.
'Ur...yeah. Who might I be speaking to?'
'I'm calling on behalf of Daisy Court-Jameson-' My voice was shaking slightly.
'My...wife. She's dead...' I could hear the strain in his voice, the pain it took to bring himself to admit that she was no longer alive.
'I am aware of that. I'm calling because of your son. I-I'm unsure of how to put this...' I stuttered, scared of what his reaction could be.
'My son?' He questioned.
'Daisy...' I sighed. 'Daisy requested for him to live with me if anything ever happened to her.'
There was a long pause.
'Who the fuck are you?'
'I'm Sienna Court-Jameson, Daisy's older sister.'
'Sister? She never mentioned she had a sister.' His tone was cynical, he didn't sound convinced at all.
'She...hasn't spoken to us directly since she ran away with you.' He didn't say anything which I took as an opportunity to fill him in on what he didn't know.
'A few months after you and Daisy ran away, she sent me a letter. She had disguised it well as she didn't want my parents to know that she kept in contact with me.'
'I didn't know about these letters. She never even introduced me to her - your parents, if you're really who you say you are.'
Daisy had told me Tony was very sarcastic at times and also very stubborn.
I sighed, proceeding to tell him about Daisy and I's secret communication.
'My parents are highly religious, in fact they don't even know about Teddy. I'd never tell them as Daisy asked me not to because they'd kill you, literally. Daiz sent me a letter with her request on it, like a will, and she told me that you're in a band and that you tour a lot. She asked me to take responsibility for Teddy as she reckoned he'd affect your life as a rockstar a lot, she knows you'd never give it up unless its for your son. She asked me to bring him back to my home, to help raise him. So you can remain doing what you love.'
'She'd never do that.' He said, barely above a whisper but audible enough for me to make it his short sentence.
'Wait, how the hell do you know she's dead?'
'Shelley told me.' Shelley was Daisy's best friend who she maintained in contact with, I knew that Tony knew her.
I waited and waited for any sort of response.
'Hello?' My voice cracked into the speaker.
'Please, don't call again or I'll have to call the police.' His voice was dangerously low, he spoke like a criminal mastermind in control, with the back up of another force to place against me.
'No, wait-'
'I don't want to hear it.' He sounded more like he was convincing himself than me.
'Tony, pleas-' I began frantically.
'Goodbye.'

The phone beeped signalling that the caller had disconnected leaving me in a state of uncertainty and worry. I couldn't do this small favour that my sister requested and it was going to stick with me for the rest of my life. I couldn't live like that. It was my way of making up for the my absense in her life ever since her planned disappearance. I had spent 4 and a half years reaching my sister only by letters and emails, she couldn't bare the thought of hearing my pleading voice as I asked her to come home.
She sent me gifts on special occassions and vice versa. She had always sent cards. She'd send pictures. And when I heard of her death, it was something completely out of the blue. Initially, I thought it was some sort of practical joke but after hearing the sobs and the usually bubbly Shelley very very quiet and not talkative, I knew something was wrong. I remember my heart swelling and I had clutched my hand to my chest at those words. I was speechless as the words swam in my head, waiting to be absorbed. That's why I couldn't give up, for my sister. I had to try once more. This time, he was the first to speak.

'Hey, I warned you. Didn't I?'
'No! No, please. I-'
'I'm going to trace-'
'Tony, list-'
'You don't have the right to call and claim my son-'
'TONY DAMN IT, JUST HEAR ME THE FUCK OUT FOR A SECOND!'
I screamed over his defiant and stubborn self. It made me so angry that he didn't believe me, I hadn't even realized my clenching fist, my long red nails almost penetrating the skin.
'I was at the funeral. I left before anyone could notice. I'm also currently going through what you're going through and you know what? I not only lost my sister once, but twice. 4 and a half years after she disappeared and I still haven't seen her. And I can't, and I never will. Now these requests she's sent me through letters, beknown to the fact that she was going to die, if I don't at least try it'll haunt me forever. I just...I'm sorry for just, appearing like this. I wasn't expecting it, you weren't expecting it. So, what are you going to do? Because I'm not going to give up. For Daisy.'
He sighed into the speaker. I chewed my lip in anticipation.
'I'm sorry, Sienna.'

The tone showing the call had ended rung through my ears. I sat motionless for 10 seconds.
30 seconds.
A minute.
5 minutes.
I reached over my laptop, my shaking hand typing in 'flights to San Diego'.