𝐅𝐚𝐦𝐢𝐥𝐲 𝐓𝐢𝐞𝐬

𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝟎𝟏

August, 1999.

It was a cool, crisp and sunny day. Cher was driving to the local highschool to pick up her daughter Emily. She pulled up in front of the school and waited for her to arrive, and within a few moments, a smiling face greeted her and sat in the passenger seat. "Hey mom!" She greeted chipperly as she pulled her into a hug. Cher smiled and hugged back, chuckling softly. "Hey kiddo. How was your day?"

"Oh it was fantastic! The highlights of my day was that I befriended the new kid and got an A+ on my trigonometry test."

"Wow, that's awesome! I told you all that studying would pay off in the end." She turned on the radio and began to drive home. "So, how did it go with Joseph today?" Emily asked after a moment. Cher bit her lip and sighed heavily, glancing over to her. "Yeah, about that...Apparently he hates kids. He broke it off with me when I mentioned picking you up."

"Aw that sucks. It's his loss though. He missed out on meeting a really awesome kid."

"Yeah, that's what I said."

"Well you must've done something right before hand."

"What do you mean?" She looked to where Emily was pointing, her eyes going round as she noticed the huge hickey on her neck. "Shit...sorry you saw that, Em."

"It's alright. I actually have the perfect solution." She grabbed her makeup bag that was hiding in her backpack and pulled out a powder foundation and a brush, applying it onto the spot. She clicked the container closed and smiled small. "There. That's better. It's like it never happened."

"Thanks baby, you're a lifesaver."

"Don't mention it." After a moment of silence between them, Cher got an idea and smiled to Emily. "Hey, I've got an idea. Why don't we go to Donnatella's and get some ice cream?"

"Sounds good to me!"

"Alright. Off we go then."

After 10 minutes of driving, they arrived at a small Italian bakery. Emily dashed out of the car hurriedly, causing Cher to chuckle. "Hey, slow down kiddo. The ice cream isn't going anywhere anytime soon." She finally caught up to her daughter and the two of them went inside the establishment and got greeted by the shop owner. "Ah, Miss Cher and Miss Emily. What can I get for you ladies today?"

"A Doctor Pepper float for me Walter."

"Rocky road, chocolate chip cookie dough and mint chocolate chip waffle cone please."

"Coming right up." With that being said, the women sat down at a booth and waited patiently to be served. Emily hummed the song that was quietly playing in the background and fidgeted with her bracelet. After a moment, Cher thought of something to say and struck a conversation. "So, tell me about the new kid you became friends with."

"Well, his name is Thomas and he's a foreign exchange student from England. He's got to be the most sweetest person in school. He's a theater nerd like I am and we share a few classes together." Cher looked to her daughter with a smirk. "Sounds like you might have a boyfriend sometime soon." She said playfully. "Oh, I wish. But he's gay unfortunately. I'm okay with being his friend anyways."

"Damn. Well, you know what they say: all the good ones are either taken or gay." Emily chuckled and nodded in agreement. After a few moments, their orders arrived and they thanked their waiter before they began to chow down. "So Em, your birthday's coming up. Any idea on what you want to do?"

"Yeah, I just want a small party with family and a few friends. Nothing too fancy."

"That's what you'll get then, kiddo." Emily nodded as she took a big spoonful of ice cream into her mouth. "I'll be sure to make an invite for Thomas." Cher said teasingly. Emily smiled and rolled her eyes, shaking her head. The two women laughed and continued to enjoy their treats and talk about their days.

************

After about an hour and a half of doing things around town, they finally arrived home, Emily immediately taking her shoes off and plopping down on the living room couch. Cher smiled to her and grabbed something from the kitchen counter. She walked up to Emily and held it out for her. "Chaz and Elijah made this for you." Emily's eyes sparkled as they landed on a pink basket. It was decorated with ribbons and filled with CDs, nail polishes, candy and different plushies. She took it from Cher and smiled at it. "Wow, this is awesome! I have two wonderful older brothers, I swear. Sometimes I feel like I don't deserve them."

Cher laughed and patted her shoulder. "Well, they figured you'd like it. Say, since it's just you and me tonight, how about we watch a movie? Your choice."

"Mask!" Cher sighed and looked to Emily, chuckling slightly. "God, when are we going to stop watching that?" She said playfully.

"Until it stops being amazing. It's got a good plot, plus the chemistry you have with Sam Elliot is just spot on!" Cher chuckled as she walked to the VHS cupboard, grabbing the tape. "Fine, we'll watch it."

"Yay!" Cher came back, putting the tape in the VHS player and went to the kitchen to grab snacks.

************

Pretty soon, the mother/daughter duo were cuddled on the couch together, wrapped in a bunch of blankets with a large bowl of popcorn between them watching the film. About half way in, Emily laid her head on her mother's lap smiling at the TV. She looked up to Cher, her focus on the screen as well, and sighed softly. "Hey ma?" She whispered. The older woman hummed and looked down at her daughter.

"I've been thinking about life lately....and I've always wanted to know. What was my father like?" Cher sighed softly and smiled small down to her, running her fingers through her hair. "Well, here's the thing about me sweetheart. Call me a slut, but I was pretty wild in my day, so I wouldn't be able to tell you. But I bet if he were here now, he'd be so proud of you and the woman you've become."

She leaned forward and kissed her daughter's forehead, rubbing her arm. The younger woman smiled and snuggled close to her, her eyes fixated on her mother. "And you know something? He'd probably love you as much as I do. You're a downright awesome kid." A chuckle came from the younger woman, and she nodded.

After a moment, Emily spoke up again. "If he came into my life right this second, I wouldn't be mad at all. I understand why he left, and I'm humble about it." Cher nodded and tried to keep herself from letting her tears run free.

The conversation made her think of a man she once knew, and hopefully would never meet again, and it killed her to remember him. Someone she once thought would be her forever, brought an ache to her heart.

She was brought out if her thoughts moments later when she heard soft snores coming from Emily, and smiled small. She thought of everything Emily had said. It killed her to know the fact her daughter grew up without a father, and she hoped that one day she'll find him.

She put her focus back on the TV, slowly drifting off to sleep herself, leaning her head back on the couch. The two women remained there for the rest of the night, peacefully sleeping through the night.