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It isn’t until that moment, looking in this man’s eyes, that I wonder just how bad this whole ordeal was for him. How, maybe, he suffered as much or more than everyone else involved. I can’t imagine watching another man raise my child while I was forced to watch from afar.
I don’t understand the circumstances of the situation, but I hope that one day I can sit down and talk to him about it.
Father to son.
I make up my mind then and there, without a second guess. Thompson may be my father, the man who raised me, but this man before me is my dad.
I step toward him, watching as his posture stiffens fractionally.
“Thanks, Dad.”
The words come easier than I thought they would.
Rob’s eyes rim with tears, his Adam’s apple bobbing as he swallows roughly.
“Bodhi… I don’t… you don’t have to call me any different than you always have,” he says, voice low and thick with emotion.
“You have always been more of a dad to me than he ever was, and I’d be honored to call you my dad,” I admit, voice cracking as I fight the oncoming wave of emotions.
Rob bites down on the inside of his cheek, nodding his head, and a tear escapes his blue eyes. “I’d like that.”
“Me too,” I say only seconds before he pulls be into a hug.
It’s the kind of hug I always wanted growing up. The unquestioning security of someone who would always be there to help me, and I can’t help but think better late than never.
After a moment, he pulls back, releasing me. We take in each other’s tear-stained face and chuckle, wiping our eyes before taking a step back.
“You better get back to the hospital. I’ll call you as soon as I have everything figured out,” he says.
I smile at the relief I feel in knowing he means what he says, and that everything will work out in the end.
Bodhi
It’s been roughly thirty-six hours since the accident, and Keaton is still unconscious.
Her color looks great, and all of her vitals are good, but she is still out. The doctors say not to be too concerned; the fall was traumatic, but her brain scan didn’t show any indication of brain injuries.
Only time will tell, and I’m hopeful. I have to be. I can't think of what it might be like if she doesn’t wake up.
Sander picked up Regina a bit ago so that she could go home and shower, and I promised to call her if anything changed.
Holding Keaton’s hand in mine, I run through all the things I want to say to her when she wakes up.
How I’m so sorry for lying to her and trying to go behind her back to fix everything after she asked me not to. How I didn’t fully trust that she could take care of Mateo by herself, even though she’d been doing it for the last two years. How arrogant of me to assume anything that I did would fix the problem.
Even now, with me and Sander coming up with a plan, I try to remind myself that it’s all for the best, and having Sander involved is probably the smartest decision either of us has made. He’ll know how to go about this in a way that ensures Mateo is dealt with for good.
My phone rings from my front pocket and I slide it out to answer.
Rob’s name lashes across the screen.
“Hello?” I answer, curious why he’s calling so soon. I only just left him a little over an hour ago.
“Bodhi, it’s… Rob,” he says, and I can hear the uncertainty in his voice.
I know I told him I was proud to call him my dad, but knowing Rob, he won’t want to come off as presumptuous or arrogant. It’s going to take us all a little time to get used to things.
“Is everything okay?” I ask.
