Safe and Sound

Part 9

Through the many years in Jackson a few things had changed, such as you had a cousin. Little Will, or Billy as you and Ellie would call him, he was about two at the time and absolutely adorable, he adored his older cousins, Ellie being one of the second things he had said just assured everyone of that fact. (You may have or may not have trained him to call Joel Uncle Jo-Jo, but no one had caught onto your scheme quite yet) You being the head of the clinic meant you had to single handedly train the next generation, your generation of doctors, however you loved your work; you're age made it hard for people to take you seriously, which was alright you weren't fazed by it, yet it still stung. Or no, it just pissed you off; mainly because half of the time they would have a hissy fit about you opening them up after you had just saved their life. Among other things, you being the head of the medics or just going by 'The Doc' you had a seat on the council, so did Joel...Mainly because Maria forced him to but nonetheless. Ever since you had come back your and Ellie's relationship went from friends to 'might as well be married already' which you didn't dislike, not in the least.

At the moment you sat at the dining room table, having come back home to change into non-medical clothes for the barn dance that would take place later that night, you lightly read a book while you sipped your coffee; it turns out your multitasking abilities heightened in certain areas but lowered in others so you were left with trying to focus on the words and forget to drink your coffee until it was cold. When you were snapped out of your little daze like state it was only to see your father standing in the kitchen, getting his own coffee and you pulled your leg up to your chair, scanning the freshly cleaned shirt and the nicely done hair. "Got a lady friend you're gonna meet there?"

To that he scoffed and looked at you, he hadn't really dated around since you all went to Jackson. For the first year and a half it was reasonable, he had just lost what might as well have been his wife if common law marriage was still a thing, after that it had just seemed he actively chose to stay away from women. Much to your dismay, which he didn't quite understand. "No, don't got a lady friend."

You frown as he sits down across from you, your nose scrunching as you think and then you shake your head, "One of the nurses, Teagan, she's your age and she just-"

"No."

"You didn't even let me finish."

"I know what you're doing, I don't want to find someone Starshine, I don't...I just don't want that right now."

With a sigh you nod, taking a sip of the disgustingly cold coffee, "Okay. Fine. But you're gonna be one lonely bastard when Ellie and I move out." It was true, when Ellie and you would move out he would be alone in this gaping home, it would get lonely, even when he would watch Will and Tommy and Maria only next door It would get lonesome, and you worried about him. Maybe it has become a part of your nature, to worry about those who you shouldn't worry about.

He shook his head to that, seeming to take it as a joke. "Speaking of which, where is Ellie?"

A moment passes and you look down, trying to think back. If you remembered correctly she was with Dina, helping her with something in the barn or something so you shrugged, and then you changed the topic, "How are you and Ellie?" You knew it was him that shot down everyone in the hospital, you had realized Jerry lied to you about it not being Ellie on the operation table. You knew it was your father that single handedly shot down a small army, would you ever tell him that you had realized this? No. You would die with that secret, the idea of seeing him having the fear of losing you all over again made you queasy. And although his and Ellie's relationship was rough, they seemed to slowly grow past it. That was a lie, Ellie hadn't forgiven him and you doubted she ever would. So you watched your father think for a moment and then he shrugged in return, lightly tapping the mug as he muttered something along the lines of he didn't know or maybe he didn't want to know. And he was most likely right, you hadn't wanted to know how much had changed in your family dynamic with this new information. It made you sick to think about.