Hers

13 Parental

The ivory walls of Noir's are the same. The same cream tables with lace trim and ivory ceilings greet me as I follow closely behind the waiter. I remember his name to be Jon but he doesn't seem to remember me. This used to be my favorite place to eat with my family. Almost every weekend I talked them into coming here for dinner. Noir's is one of the only authentic french restaurants in Florida. From the cooks to the waiters everyone is always so friendly.

My breath hitches when my father comes into view. He looks how he always does clean cut and  well rested. His black hair is neatly combed back and his face is freshly shaven. He looks up from the paper when he senses our presence. I thank the waiter and take the seat in front of him.

I can't bring myself to look into his eyes so I keep them on his black suit. I keep my hands in my lap and wait for him to start. He wants to apologize so he should be the one to start. I'm just counting down the minutes. I need to get back to school. Back to Eric.

"Olivia... I want you to forgive me for what I did. I don't know why I hit you. It's something I will have to live with for the rest of my life. I'm not that man who abuses his family." He tells me. "Please can you forgive your father?" He begs.

I can do one or two things here. One forgive him so I can leave, two make it hard for him and not accept his apology. A part of me wants to make beg for my forgiveness. Not just for that night but for hurting my mother and breaking up our family.

I can't be that selfish. No matter how much I hate what he did to us I can't put myself or my mother back into the fighting and arguments. "I forgive you but you have to promise me no matter how angry you get with me you will never rise a hand to me again." I give him the ultimatum.

His blue eyes light up and his famous smile appears on his face. That smile that makes him look ten times younger. I smile back at him but only halfway. My smile doesn't reach my eyes.

Jon our waiter returns with the food my father must have ordered before I arrived. The faster I finish my meal the faster I can leave since I've done the hard part. I just hope he doesn't want to have bonding time.

I make an excuse to leave early. I tell him I need to work on some of my photos in the darkroom at school. My father believes me and offers to drive me back himself. I decline his offer and escape to his drivers SUV.

He kisses me on my forehead before closing the door behind me. I let out a breath of air. I'm glad that is over. Now I can get back to school and maybe learn more about this potential threat.