Shadows (Patrick Kane)

(71) Whatever It Takes

Sophia

The Hawks take care of the Predators in six games before moving on to the Wild here at the beginning of May. Patrick didn't have the best opening series number wise but luckily they didn't need him to. And looking at his stats in the playoffs against the Wild I have a feeling that he will break out here against a familiar foe.

And in the midst of all of this hockey my parents call for a family dinner. Usually this means dad is getting married again or it's a intervention for me to stop getting sloppy drunk and going out in public but I haven't been to a bar in months and dad has been engaged so the wedding wouldn't be a surprise. Of course I bring Patrick because he was basically family at this point. Him and my brother was as close as ever and my parents adore him. He wanted a distraction from hockey and nothing is more distracting that whatever crisis my family is going through at the time.

"I need a drink. The stiffest one you got" I say as I sit down at the table. Naturally we were the last ones there but I can't be too unpredictable.

"Is everything okay" my mom wonders.

"Yeah. I just know I'm gonna need it tonight" I admit. When you try to force family like this the night never seems to end well. So I'll need every drop of my drink.

"We're not that bad" dad says.

"I have many many reasons to believe otherwise" I defend.

We order some food and my drink comes out first. I can just tell there was something more to this dinner than wanting to get family together. Because since Patrick's family has been in town for the first games of the playoffs they never had to sit around like this. Wherever they go was home and I loved hanging out with them. And while my family is a lot better off now than it was before it was still off. I could feel it.

"So what's the real reason we're here" I ask. Because there was a real reason.

"Your mom and I have a announcement" my dad claims and I stop. I had a feeling this is what this was about but I could never be sure when it comes to them.

"You're together... aren't you" I accuse.

The table falls silent as we all look around. My parents looked guilty, my brother was confused. Me? I guess I was just trying to make sense of it all.

"Weren't you just engaged to some LA model" my brother accuses my dad.

"I was" my dad confesses. "But she has been back in LA for a few months and we called it quits last month. It wasn't gong to work" he shrugs.

"It never did but you still made it happen. That was the thing" my brother reminds him.

"This is different" my dad begs.

"How" my brother challenges.

"Because he loves her, and he always did" I whisper. I feel everyone's eyes on me as I look up. "Think about it. He was hung up on mom so when the women he married ended up not being like mom he moved on. He kept looking for someone he loved in the way he loved our mom and never did. This cycle repeated itself until she came back" I explain.

"Well it's a little too late don't you think" Hank asks me.

"For her to be there for us yeah. We've grown up. We have lives of our own and we don't need mom and dad looking over us. There's nothing they will do now that will fix what happened back them. But to them it's not too late" I insist.

"I'm sorry, I guess I just don't understand. We had to grow up in a environment lacking love. I barley knew how to hug when I first got to college and I didn't even realize that was unusual. I was put against my sister every chance there way just so she would push me harder and she ended up hating me in the end. She was the one person I thought would always be in my corner and I looked across the ring and she was there staring me down because she had to. And I spent years without a parent looking out for me past the X's and O's trying to find sense in it all. I'm sorry if I'm not exactly jumping for joy with this news" Henry defends.

My mother and I recoiled pretty easily for I am a empath. I could easily feel the regret, the pain she too suffered while she was away. But Henry on the other hand, he didn't have that. All he knew was that mom left, gave up on us and stopped caring all together. To a little boy who had barley come to know his mom losing her hurt a lot. He always wanted her to be back but there comes a point where it's too late. And if you ask him she's too late.

"I'm trying to make things right" my mom begs. "One step at a time. I got closure from Sophia and love from your father. I'm not here to mess everything up. I'm here to try and fix what I had broken."

"So what are you using me for then, huh" Henry snaps.

"All I want from you is trust. And I know that is something that is earned not given. Something that once it is broken it is no longer going to be what it used to be. But trust has to go both ways" she reminds him.

"Well I'm not there yet, and I'm not sure I will be" he claims.

"I'm willing to wait. For however long it takes" she claims.

"How does 20 years sound? Because that's how long I waited for you" he says.

"Whatever it takes" my mom replies.

After the longest dinner of my life my suffering comes to a end. Mom leaves with dad back to her place and I calm Henry down a little. I know he's upset but things could be worse. A lot worse. Dad could still be trying to marry that model from LA who wouldn't even come visit him or wanted to meet his kids. Mom could still be hiding from us never to give us closure. I'm not saying what's happening is a blessing but considering our luck this is about as good as it's going to get.

"You know, I see a lot of your mom in you" Patrick claims as we go for a walk. This dinner was kind of a mess and I felt bad for dragging him along so I offered for a walk to just relax before I send him off into the playoffs again.

"She left when I was just a little kid but I was old enough to remember the lessons she tried to tell me. I think she had planned for some time that she would leave. So she would tell me things that maybe at the time it didn't make much sense but as I got older the lessons stuck. And for that I am appreciative" I admit. 

"You think you're brother will come around" he questions.

"I'm not sure. There's nothing that says he has to. Blood might be thicker than water but in the end it's still just a liquid. What runs through our veins doesn't dictate who is family. I've felt more a part of your family than I ever did mine. He doesn't have to take her back. If and when he's ready he'll come around. But they can't force him to accept this it'll only make things worse" I insist.

"But you guys will be okay, right" he asks with concern dripping through his voice.

"Of course. We're the Elway's. We'll figure it out" I promise.