The Guys on my Flat

Chapter Sixty Eight

Booker POV:
I was tempted to drag Adam from the train station and scold him at home.

But when I actually got there, I seemed to have changed my mind upon seeing him. Katie seemed to talk me out of it also, saying how it wouldn't be fair to embarrass him at the train station in front of people, and we both seemed to agree that it was unfair for Adam not to speak with his mother.

But what else was I meant to do?

As I walked through the crowd, I realised just how independent Adam could actually be. Katie told me how he knew where his mother lived and that he had this entire battle plan spread out for him to pull the wool over my eyes.

I was expecting something with the way he was acting, but this was more to my worst extreme situation.

I stood next to him and took his hand as we both waited for the train doors to open. In my hand, Adam tensed up and I saw him look to me, I could only imagine how frightened he must've been to see me, the one person who could drag him away from the ability to catch the train. And as I turned to him, I saw he was indeed frightful.

"I thought I taught you better than this, Adam," I said looking down to him completely, "always hold my hand in crowded places."

I'm a complete push-over, I admit it.

As we got on the train, we managed to found a vacant seat and sit across from one another. Adam still had this look of a frightened chipmunk for the first ten minutes, at first just staring at me looking like his poor little head may explode from pressure.

I looked out the window and occasionally went back to looking at him, each time he almost looked like he was going to be sick.

He seemed to gain the courage to talk to me halfway through the ride, "Dad, I'm really sorry. I didn't want to lie to you, but I-"

I held a hand up, making him halt with his words and making his mouth clamp shut with a slight quiver. "You don't need to explain yourself, Adam," I assured taking my glasses off to polish them, "I understand your reasoning. You just want to go visit Mum, and you were frightened that I would say no, so you didn't tell me." I put my glasses back on my face and leaning towards him, "but Adam, you never apologise where you don't need to."

He looked at me oddly.

"Adam, I'm the one who needs to apologise to you. I admit that it was unfair of me to deny you visitation to Mum," I confessed, much to Adam's surprise. I couldn't blame his shock, probably thinks I've gone insane or something.

I've always been a composed man or a reasonable one in Adam's eyes, and I like to think that Adam is becoming a mini me... or a better version of a mini me. It wasn't often I apologised for my actions, because there was normally never a need for me to.

But now I admitted that a decision I made was a wrong one, an incorrect one...

God that's hard to admit.

I gave him a small smile and reached over and grabbed his hand, "I'm sorry, Adam. I'm sorry for putting you through this when it never should've existed in the first place," I replied sitting up straighter.

Adam still looked at me with an overwhelmed expression before standing up and launching himself on me in a hug. I froze for a moment upon feeling it before returning it to the now trembling Adam. "T-Thanks Dad..."

I smiled as I kissed the top of his head and allowed him to sit down again. Don't thank me yet, buddy... I thought as I looked out the window, not just yet.

*
Adam POV:
When we came off the train I bolted down the platform, calling for Dad to hurry up. I was so excited!

I hadn't seen Mum in years, and now we're both going to go see her. Maybe we could go out for dinner or something, like before, like when we were a proper family.