I Don't Want to Fall in Love... With You

After our lengthy rendezvous, I had to leave Elijah before school finished, if I was to make it back for my make-up test. I sat in that classroom for an hour, staring at my paper and wishing it would provide the answers for me. Unfortunately, I had to rely on myself, which held a brain I could not be sure worked for good.

I mean, if it did, then I wouldn't have thrown myself at Elijah, I'd have waited till he sought me out. I didn't know what to do or think when it came to him – and that made me jittery.

Straight after my exam, I walked home. Going one day without riding in Emily's car felt foreign, something I had never done since she bought the thing. Well, aside from our date, but I decided never to go back to such a horrible memory again.

When I opened the front door, the first thing I noticed was the unmistakeable sound of noise. Usually, my mom painted in silence, so hearing Latin music come from the living room was nothing short of peculiar.

Bastet pounced on top the shelf next to the coat rack, blocking any attempt to put my keys in the bowl. Her blue eyes stared back at me.

"What's wrong, girl?" I reached, but she hissed, paws at the ready.

Scowling softly, I ventured further into the house, following the sound of maracas. Whilst I did, I envisioned a picture of my mother dancing, a piece of her that had been missing the past couple of years.

Walking into the living room, my breath halted when not only did I see her laugh...

She was also smiling.

I could one-hundred percent make out the reason why.

"Hey there, cornflake!"

A man dressed in casual attire, a clean-shaven face and the deepest set of brown eyes I'd ever known was in the middle of my lounge, big and hairy hands clasped around my mom's as they sashayed their hips.

There was a time when a scene like this used to make me smile in glee and join, until we could no longer feel our legs. There was a time when I knew the man who greeted me with cutesy pet names.

But that time had passed. And I hadn't looked forward to its return.

My mother, however, had. She gazed at him longingly, desperately, just like she always had. As if he'd never left us alone.

"I thought maybe my lovely mother had an epiphany or something ... I suppose you can sense my amazement to notice it's only the bastard who abandoned us." Rolling my eyes, I began walking off, away from the woman who let him back in where he was no longer welcome.

"Cornflake!" Jeremy Christianson called after me, his tone light and warming.

Too bad he didn't know he couldn't talk to me like that anymore. We'd been coping fine without him; why did he have to come back and ruin everything?

God, I hated my dad all over again.

As I sat on the edge of my bed, I could hear them together. Laughing, crying, screaming in delight...

I wanted to ram my fist into his perfectly-chiseled face. Anything, at all, just to make him leave.

My finger felt swollen as I tried to tap the keys on my phone, eager to speak with Emily and either, stay at hers, or have her come here so he wouldn't dare come into my private quarters.

But I found that, as many times as I tried to aim for the call button, I couldn't hit it.

Every muscle in my body was taut, exhausted. It didn't need this sort of drama, I already had enough on my plate. Why did he have to...?

I sighed.

There was a time when I adored my father. He was the man I looked up to, the example of a man I wanted to date – but my ideals had changed a lot since I was fourteen. A year after his separation from my mother, he gave up on both of us. Didn't care enough to phone or send a card. He had no idea what we were like now, or just what kind of household he was walking into.

He was only still within this building because, for the first time in years, my mother was happy.

I didn't want to be the one to break it to her when he'd leave us once again.

Because I knew it. He was my dad, and that's what he did best.

"Cornflake? Are you alright?"

Pushing my mobile aside, I faced the door. Luckily, he had that to create distance between us, otherwise I'd be on him right now.

"I know this is a lot to take in, so I'm not going to force it. Just know I missed you – both of you – and I'm ready to be your dad again."

Exhaling as evenly as I could, I advanced towards the door, still not one-hundred percent if I wanted to see the monster standing behind it.

When I looked at him, I noticed his features were just like I remembered. His bones were sharp and cutting, skin in great condition and, at his age, made most men envious. For a man in his mid-thirties, he could pass for a young adult, perhaps even to the point of having to prove age of ID at a 7/11.

But still, he was no longer the man I knew. I'm not sure he existed.

"Can I come in?"

I immediately felt my eyes tighten, but the soft singing of my mom loosened me up. She was crooning along to a Ricky Martin track.

Leaving my dignity there, I granted his request. Tip-toing his way round me, he rubbed his chin as he took note of my belongings. His fingers stretched to caress my navy bed sheets.

"I remember when these were... what was that fantasy show you loved?"

I rolled my eyes. "This is my point exactly."

His gaze met with my own. I was ashamed to carry the same eye color as this creature.

"What?"

I crossed my arms as his reached out, a gesture of comfort, one I neither wanted nor needed. Especially not from the likes of him.

He was visibly hurt, but I couldn't bring myself to care.

"I hate to be the one to break it to you, Jeremy, but you are not my father. You're a man that used to be part of my world, but you decided to leave it. Without a warning, or without so much as a final goodbye – you were just... gone."

I refused to shed tears for him, he didn't deserve them. So, I continued to look him in the eye and laid it all out bare to witness.

"It's been three years, you can't simply expect things to go back to how you knew them. People change and grow, and we were doing just fine without you. If you're looking to be my dad, then you're probably best leaving, that way I won't have to be disappointed again."

He swallowed down the catch in his throat, pocketing his hands when I gave no indication to console him.

I'd only spoke the truth. I hoped I'd never have to, but here we were.

"I'm not foolish. It's been a long time, I get that you thought I'd never come back – hell, I didn't know myself. But I never..." He stopped, licking his bottom lip, before speaking to my dresser. "I never intended to hurt you. I did and I have a lot of making up to do, but I know it's worth it. You're my only daughter and I need you, always. If I spend the rest of my life proving that to you, then I'll die content."

Now, it was my turn to shift my gaze. Meeting his eyes was so hard when it shouldn't have to be. He was the man who taught me ABC's and traumatized me with the birds and the bees... but he was also the guy who promised me he'd forever be around, that I could never be rid of him.

I had questions, thousands, but I either couldn't voice them, or didn't know how to. Words used to come as easy as breathing, especially in his presence, but now my chest ached with every inhale.

I pinched myself.

Looking up at him, I faltered. He copied, and it was awkward all over again.

Maybe I was being too hard on him? After all, he did come all the way here, instead of writing to me again. So, perhaps he's a new man, like he claims, and I should give him the benefit of the doubt.

As my mother's soprano carried through the house... I realized who I was doing this for.

"You step one foot wrong, and I'll personally remove you from this house."

Jeremy laughed lowly, tucking his hands back into his jean pockets. His mouth twitched lightly as my mother's voice rang louder, like a classical operatic star looking to shine.

When he did things like that, I was reminded of how much I used to be so sure they were madly in love. There was a time when they shared glances and made the most awkward touches seem intimate. How was one supposed to react when he just up and disappeared?

I yearned to ask, but I got the sinking feeling that whatever answer I expected, it wouldn't be what I was after.

Tip-toeing around me, he headed back out to join my mom.

"Jeremy?" I whispered.

His gaze held mine, eyes so brown they had to be made from the darkest abyss.

"Vampire High." When he just stared, I held back a smile as much as I could. "My old bedsheets... they were Vampire High."

"I knew that." He scoffed playfully.

"Of course." I retorted, sitting down at the bottom of my bed as he closed the door, re-joining my mother for another dance around the living room. Maybe this time he wouldn't lose his groove.

I guess only time will tell, I thought to myself as I lay down on my bed, alone.