We love you (so please don't go)

Chapter 3: A (not so) good relationship between father and son

Edited on January 18, 2023: I removed a small snippet from this chappie.

TW: One, tiny mention of tr@um@. I'll put in a warning so y'all who get triggered by triggering topics can skip.

Krus, Affie and Essie approached Ruv, who was walking around the church and picking sticks and weeds and putting them in a garbage bag. Krus then called his son's attention.

"Um...Ruvyzvat?"

"Yes?" Ruv asked with gritted teeth.

"It feels wrong to be doing nothing while you work." Krus said. "May we help you with that?"

"It's not necessary."

"We know." Krus said. "But we'd like to. Would that be alright?"

"Fine." Ruv answered. "But only because my wife wants me to spend more time with you." He mumbled as Krus, Essie and Affie began ripping out weeds and picking up sticks and putting them in the bag Ruv was holding. After a couple minutes of silence, Essie spoke up.

"Dedushka?"

Krus turned to his eldest granddaughter. "Yes, Essie?"

"I think you have updog."

"What's updog?" Affie snickered, making Krus turn to her in confusion.

"Updog isn't one word it's two words." Affie said. "So technically you were saying; "What's up dog?"" It took a minute or two for the former officer to process what the joke was.

"Oh....OH- I get it now." Affie, unable to hold it in anymore, fell to her knees, laughing hysterically.

Once Affie calmed down, the four continued to work in silence, which Krus, eventually, broke.

"Ruvyzvat?"

Ruv sighed. "What?"

"I'm really sorry you had a hard life." Krus apologized. "I feel so awful that I couldn't protect you and your mother. I'm so sorry."

"It's k." Ruv replied curtly.

"No, it's not." Krus said. "I failed as a father and a lover. I failed you and your mother. And for that, I'll never forgive myself."

"No point in worrying about it now." Ruv said. After that, they fell into another awkward silence that lasted for a couple minutes.

"Are your children alright?" Krus asked.

"Hmm?"

"The children. Are they alright? Happy, healthy...law abiding?" Krus asked.

"For the most part." Ruv answered, avoiding eye contact with him. "Affie is sociable, outgoing, empathetic, very emotive and sm0k3s, but doesn't do it much and only sm0k3s in moderation, Essie, as you can see, is very formal around everyone, no exceptions, kind, caring, sometimes stern and is overall a good friend, daughter and sister, Rasazy is polite, sweet, smart and loves reading and learning new things and Selever likes trespassing because it's "fun" and also acts like an obnoxious cyka whenever he feels like it, which is basically most of the time."

"How is the boy disciplined when he commits this crime?" Ruv started ripping the weeds more aggressively, and Essie, knowing that this would most likely not ends well, answered for her father.

"Mother usually handles that." Essie said. "He listens to her more than me, Affie, Rasazy and father."

"She has a greater influence over him?"

"Yeah." Affie replied.

"How does she punish him?"

"Usually grounding him, giving him extra chores and taking his phone away." Ruv answered.