Run Away With Me

Chapter 21 (Katherine)

When I wake up Sunday morning, I smell pancakes. I squint, the late morning sun lighting up my room. I look at my phone. 10:00. It is nice to sleep in for a change. I sit up and stretch with a yawn. I look around, and fall back into my bed. It's just too comfy. I'm beginning to drift off again when Dad comes in. 

"Wake up, sleepyhead!" I groan and sit up reluctantly. "Whoa, not so pretty when you wake up, are you?" I shoot him a glare, but it only makes him chuckle. He walks over and plants a kiss on my forehead. "I'm kidding, Kat. You're always beautiful." I hear him mumble a 'just not right now' as he walks out. I shake my head, laughing in spite of myself. I yank myself out of my comfy bed and get dressed for the day. A pair of jeans and a rust orange blouse. Nothing special. I try to tame the mess that is my hair, and eventually get it into a sort of half-pony. I head out of my room, finding that Dad is, in fact, making pancakes. He looks up when I walk in. 

"Ah, you're finally up!" I do a mental face-palm. 

"You only came and got me 10 minutes ago!" He laughs, and I sit down at the island bar. He sets down a fresh bowl of pancakes. Yes, bowl. I quirk an eyebrow up at him. 

"Kitchen sink pancakes?" I ask inquisitively. He winks at me and clicks his tongue. I head into the kitchen, searching for anything and everything to put on my pancakes. I return to my seat with chocolate chips, bananas, nutella, and vanilla ice cream. I decide that the best way to go about this is to make a sandwich, so I spread the nutella on two pancakes, and slice up the banana to go on one of them. I then proceed to cover it in the chocolate chips, followed by the ice cream and the second pancake. After a bit of struggle, I get a bite into my mouth, and I can't help the sound that escapes me. 

"Mmmm, oh iy 'osh dis ish 'o good," I mumble through a full mouth. Dad turns to look at me, and he laughs when he sees my creation. 

"Geez Katherine, you're going to give yourself a heart attack eating like that." I smile as best I can, and continue attacking my monstrosity. He sits down next to me, with a much tamer stack of pancakes. We eat in silence for a bit, and then Dad clears his throat. 

"So, Kat. I was thinking you and I could do something fun today." I look at him, swallowing the bite in my mouth. 

"Yeah? What'd you have in mind?" 

"Ah, I don't really know. I was hoping you might." I nod. 

"Okay. Maybe we could, like, go bowling or something?" 

"That sounds great. We can go whenever you're ready," he says, turning back to his pancakes. I do the same, slightly confused by Dad. He's been so . . . fatherly. He hasn't been like this since my mom died. Whatever the reason, it's a nice change of pace. 

~~~

"Ugh, when did you get so good?" My dad shakes his head in disbelief. 

"What're you talking about? I've always been this good," I scoff, with a complimentary hair flip. He laughs, and goes to take his turn. After few more turns, I win the game. Dad runs a hand through his hair. 

"Wow. You beat me good." I smirk, and take a sip of my milkshake. He sighs, and we eat our fries in silence for a bit. I catch Dad staring at me with a look of confusion. 

"What?" I ask. 

"Oh, nothing, just." He shakes his head. "Why did you come with me? You're 18, you could've stayed with your friends." I sigh. 

"Honestly, part of me felt obligated. You're my dad." I shrug. "It just felt like the right thing to do." He just stares into his own milkshake. Why did I come home? I mean, I was fairly certain that my dad would make me come anyway. But maybe I wanted to mend things. Most of the boys don't have an family. Seems only right that I should cherish the one I have. 

Dad sighs across from me. "Honey, if-. If you want to go back to New York, you can." He winces as if this is actually painful to say. A smile grows across my face. 

"Really? You mean it?" He nods, and I run around and give him a hug. "Thank you thank you thank you thank you!" Dad smiles, but I can see the pain behind it. "But, if it's alright with you, I think I'd like to stay here a little longer," I say. He looks up, surprise in his eyes. He tries to hide it, but I can tell he's pleased. 

"Well, yeah, of course Kat. Whatever you want." I smile, and we finish our food. We talk, about nothing in particular. How fun New York was, and the drive there. How quiet things had been back home, per usual. We played a couple more rounds of bowling, both of which I won. We left in high spirits just before dinner. Arriving home I head for our theater room. 

"So, how about we watch a movie and order chinese for dinner? End our day with a bang?" Dad looks at me, worry leaking into his expression. 

"I, uh, I can't kitten." At my vacant expression, he continues. "I have a date?" He phrases it as a question, as if asking for my approval. 

"Dad, that's great!" He exhales, as if he'd been holding his breath. "I'm happy for you." He smiles at me. 

"I'm so glad you feel that way, Kat. I know," he hesitates. "I know things have been rough without your mom. And I know I wasn't the best father to you during that time. This time." He crosses the room and puts a hand on my shoulder. "But, I'm trying now, okay?" I nod, not trusting my voice. He opens his arms, and I give him a hug. 

"I love you, Kat." 

"I love you too, Daddy."