OCEAN VILLAGE

40. to build a home🌺

—Athena—
-i built a home, for you, for me-
-the cinematic orchestra-

I sat in front of his open fire, still shivering from the cold, Hayley had sat beside me with a hot cocoa for her and one for me while dad had to do something important. Probably about me.

Hayley sips on her drink, she's so nice, so sweet, everything i would have wanted in a mother. "You're eighteen, right? I get confused between you and... Thea?" She guesses.

"Rhea and yeah." I sip on mine, it warmed me up a little bit more. "How old are you?"

"Thirty." She smiles at me. I mean. dads only forty two. He and Mom had Atlas and Rhea young.

"You look younger." I look at the blazing flame.

"Did you finally get his letters?" She giggles a little bit.

I look at her, "What letters?"

Her smile drops to her confused face again, "You didn't get any letters?"

"No." I shake my head. He wrote me letters?

"How'd you get here then?" She sets her cup of cocoa on the floor.

"I... Uh... My boyfriend found out for me." I look back at the flame. It honestly doesn't surprise me if mom threw away the letters. She's a bitch like that.

"Oh." She says, clearly taken by surprised. "He's probably trying to look a bit more presentable... and calling your mother to let her know you're here." She puts her warm hand on my cold sweatpants.

"She won't care." I say truthfully.

"Did you walk here?" She asks.

"I got the train to Manhattan, walked the rest." I look as my dad walks into the living room, still with his Christmas robe on.

He gave me the biggest hug on the doorstep, squeezed me and held me tightly. I'm glad he did, no one understand how in need i was of that.

"You're not at the cabin with them?" He walks over, taking a seat beside me on the floor.

I wanted to crawl into his arms and let him cradle me like he did whenever i was younger.

"She kicked me out a month ago." I sniff, i probably caught a cold from being stubborn.

"Why she's not answering the phone then?" He looks at me, understanding moms behaviour.

"Receptions bad up there." I rub my lips together.

He pouts a little, i never realized as a kid that our lips are the only physical appearance we have in common, we both pout the same.

"Oh, come here." He opens his arms wide.

I shuffle up and fall into his arms, i can't help but cry. Cry into his ridiculous christmas robe that smelled exactly like him. Feel so much comfort as his arms wrap around me.

"Don't cry, darling." He wipes my cheek with his hand, although i could hear the lump in his throat too.

"I shall go and make some food-" Hayley says but even though i've just met her, i've not felt the love of a mother figure in so long, she gives me that.

"Stay." I put my hand on hers, "Please stay."

She looks to my dad and i feel dad nod his head, she sits back down and shuffles up close, rubbing my knee with her hand.

"You could have got really sick Athena." Dad says.

"Worth it." I hiccup.

"You could have got an uber, why did you walk?" He rubs my arm.