"I've been keeping a secret from you..."
I froze as I heard those words. I dreaded what was going to be said next. It usually didn't mean anything good. Was it about addiction? Or maybe another breakup?
"When you were gone, I..."
Oh, God. I've been gone for 6 months. A lot of bad stuff could have happened.
Is that why we had to meet in a random restaurant? No, I couldn't bare to hear any bad news. The tension was killing me.
"What is it, John? Just tell me already, please!" I begged.
"While you were gone, I began spending more time in the studio. I felt so inspired, I haven't felt that way since we recorded Shadows... So, I began jamming with Flea. Then Chad joined us. One day Anthony came along with a notebook full of lyrics. They were so good. I know I said I would be on a hiatus until Hope goes to school, but..." John said really slowly, carefully picking his words.
"But what? You're killing me!" I interrupted him. I wanted him to get straight to the point.
"Me and the guys recorded another album. And it's coming out next week. I'm so sorry for telling you about this today, I really didn't wanna hide this from you..." John said.
Thank God. That was the best news ever.
I could tell he was waiting for my reaction. He looked really worried.
"That's amazing news! Congratulations! I couldn't be happier for you." I said and smiled widely.
"Thank you, son. I was afraid you might be disappointed that I kept it a secret from you. I just... I didn't wanna tell you over the phone." He told me.
"I know, I understand that. Gosh, I didn't realize how much I missed you until I saw you today. I'm so happy you recorded new songs. I bet the album's gonna be fire. What's the title?" I asked.
"Stadium Arcadium. It's the name of one of the songs off the album but I feel like it captures the spirit of the album really well. We've recorded over 30 songs and 28 of them made it on the album. I'm very proud of it. I can't wait until you listen to it." John said.
We finished our food and then we finally drove to John's house. I was so excited to see Emily and Hope. But, to be honest, I was scared of accidentally running into Lilly while I was there. Although I really wanted to see my son, I dreaded having to confront my ex.
"How often did you see Johnny?" I asked dad as I pulled into our street.
"Not often at all. You know that I rarely leave the house and Lilly comes to me only when she needs something. I babysat him twice when she wanted to go out." John replied.
"I wanna be a better father, I really do. But I just don't know how to talk to Lilly." I said.
"I'm the worst person to ask for advice on how to be a good father. I try to repay for what I've done, I'm trying to be the best dad to Hope. I do my best to give her all the love you never got from me." John told me as tears formed in his eyes.
"You're an amazing dad. Hope loves you so much." I said.
"Emily tried to talk to Lilly many times but Lilly just doesn't wanna open up. She refuses to talk about you. It breaks my heart too, Johnny's my grandson. You know, one night he told me that when he grows up, he wants to be a rockstar like me and his daddy. He was so fucking happy when I let him play with my guitar..." John said, tearing up.
I tried so hard not to start bawling my eyes out. I got out of the car and looked at my old house. I still thought it was the most beautiful house ever. I hoped Johnny enjoyed living there. I wondered what his room looked like...
"Josh!" I heard Emily scream and, before I turned around, she had already wrapped her arms around me and kissed my cheek.
"Em!" I replied and hugged her tightly.
"How are you doing? I can't help but notice that you lost some weight. Are you okay? Like truly okay, you know?" Emily asked me quietly, so that John wouldn't hear her.
"I'm good. Really good, actually. I missed some meals because I was really busy, I was working 'till early in the morning and waking up in time for lunch. And I didn't particularly enjoy the British food." I said.
"I'm making Chili Con Carne for dinner." Emily told me and smiled.
"Oh yeah! I hope there are at least two full pots." I replied and laughed.
As I made my way inside John's house, I immediately began searching for Hope. I noticed her playing with a toy piano in her nursery. I quietly stood there and watched her. She was so cute. She definitely had John's hair. The shiny brown locks were now nearly shoulder length. I remembered that I had the same hair when I was a child. But it looked much better on her. She had sparkly brown eyes and pouty lips. Then she noticed me. She froze and slowly moved away from me.
"Hope, it's me, your brother. Do you remember me? I'm Josh. We talked on the phone. It's me, JoJo." I said calmly.
"JoJo?" She asked.
"Yes, I'm JoJo. You promised you'd give me a big kiss when I come back, remember?" I asked her.
"JoJo!" She shouted and ran up to me.
I got on my knees and waited for her next move. Without hesitation Hope hugged me and gave me a kiss on the cheek.
"Aww, you're so cute. I missed you, sis. I love you." I said and smiled at her.
***
More is coming soon!
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The lost son ~John Frusciante and Josh Klinghoffer
FanficOne day Josh Klinghoffer finds out that he is a biological son of John Frusciante. How is he supposed to deal with that? How will John react? Will he accept the fact that his son was actually his close friend?
