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10th June 1995 / Sayreville New Jersey
HAYLEE'S POV:
I love you too.
That was all he said, and in a way I was glad for it.
Was it bittersweet? Undeniably, but I was still thankful for it. Even when he didn't want to talk with me, he hadn't let me go without the reassurance that he loves me. If nothing else, it'd eased my nerves and warmed my heart just a little.
On a brighter note, I was about to see Faye and Jasper again. My two beautiful babies, they'd be sure to bring my spirits up. I certainly needed it. Even as I parked up in Dad's drive I felt vacant. Dull, numb from everything.
Three knocks and Dad was already at the door. It was odd to be greeted without being leapt at by Jasper; he must've been elsewhere and unable to hear.
Dad's entire chest sagged in relief when he saw me. His demeanor was tinged with the dichotomy of worry and relief, brows furrowed close together.
And I knew from his stance that he knew. That whatever had happened last night, Dad was privy to.
"You know..." I sighed, shrinking in on myself. Shame colored my cheeks, I could hardly look at him. When I did I saw Jon, the same worry plagued his face.
"Know?" Dad spoke, a sharp bite to his voice I'd never heard before. Well, at least not at me. It made me all the more upset. "Of course I know."
He spoke hurriedly and harshly, but not loudly. "You don't return for the whole night and you expect me not to know? Jon called me at three in the morning, shaking and stammering because he didn't know what the god damn heck could've happened to you. He called just about everyone in your darn neighborhood in sheer desperation. What were you thinking."
If I'd thought Jon's scolding was bad, hearing it from my own father was unfathomably worse. Probably because it made me feel more like a child; nothing like the thirty one year old woman I was in actuality. I thought I'd managed to reign my tears in after my long bath, but they all began to resurface with his tone.
"I didn't sleep for one second last night, I was worried to death about you, and so was Emma. Thank God Faye's too little to know or understand, I think she'd be pretty worried too, wouldn't she?"
"Alright dear, that's enough."
Emma stepped out from the shadows behind my father. My whole body sagged in relief. Her voice was soft, smooth and angelic; a sharp contrast to both Dad's and Jon's. I just wanted to run to the safety of Emma's arms, taking solace in the sweet homely scent of her perfume.
Dad stepped aside to allow Emma through. She stepped down to the porch in nothing but her slippers and pulled me into her warm embrace. She pulled me inside, closing the door behind me and comforting me. "It's okay," she cooed, kissing my forehead despite her shorter stature.
