Tybee Island

This is the Future.

We had been driving for half an hour and Dad still hadn't given any clues to where we were going. 'Come on Dad..TELL ME' I said whilist poking him in the rips. Laughing he replied with 'I'm driving lana' 'Ok Dad' I said mockingly giving a wide smile. 'Can we at least turn the radio on?' He nodded so I turned it on nicki minaj's pound the alarm booming. Dad winced in response 'Wow that's loud.' 'I KNOW.' Turning it up even louder I laughed as he tried to cover his ears.

'POUND THE ALARM' I screeched trying my best to irritate him. 'Don't you like it?' 'Of course I like Nicki Minal' I fell into a heap of laughter turning the radio down. He looked bewildered. 'It's Minaj father!'

Arriving we pulled into a car park. 'We're here' dad said as he unbuckled his seatbelt. I followed him out of the car slamming the door behind me. I looked ahead and we were at a church. 'Church on a Thursday?!' 'Nope.' 'Then why are we here?' Confused wasn't even the word to describe me at that present moment. 'This is where me and your mother got married.'

'That's nice but why am I here?' 'Because you need to know the reason why your mother and I divorced.' He walked into the church myself following. It was beautiful. Stain glassed windows,a piano,the alter with red carpeted steps and a statue of mary holding baby jesus.

We sat in one of the rows at the back sitting in silence which I broke. 'This is beautiful.' 'I know' he replied in a daze. 'So tell me everything you need to' I said staring into his eyes. He began speaking slowly and calmly.

'Me and your mother met in this area when we were 17. She was the hot chick and I was the looser. We feel in love at a school dance. She was dared to ask me and I accepted foolishly but she truly had feelings for me. We started dating,getting to know each other but our families hated each other. They thought we'd be better off with different people.'

'I'd sneak out,lie to my parents and they stopped me from seeing her. She fell pregnant with you a year later. We moved out..got a home and got married. Everything was perfect. 5 years down the line and things went downhill. I couldn't cope with being a father. I drank,took drugs and slept with other women. Your Mom was so broken but I didn't care.'

I held my dad's hand offering support. 'Then one night I got extremely drunk stumbled outside here and set the whole place on fire with petrol during an evening service. Your mom was in there. She'd gotten you a baby sitter luckily but...I.. nearly killed her. She was severely burnt and so was the rest of her family and the congregation.'

I opened my mouth in shock. Mom had always been so secretive or weird whenever me and billy asked her about the scars on her neck and arms. It all added up. Dad continued me grasping his arm tighter. 'I was so stupid. Nothing could take back that night. Her being unconscious in hospital. And then waking up telling me she never wanted to see me again.'

'The next day I discovered a note given to me by the guards in prison. It was from her telling me she was moving away and taking you with her.' I vaguely remember that day, mom sitting in the back of a taxi with me as I watched her cry and wipe away her tears. I'd asked her where dad was but she never replied.

'But billy is your son too right?' 'Yes. We met up one night and....yes.' I shuddered in disgust.

I glanced back at dad still clutching his hand. 'Thank you for letting me know... and.. I love you Dad. Regardless of what happened. This is the future.' He peered looking upset and emotionally drained. 'Yes. It is.' I rested my head in his chest and we sat in silence.