Angel of Mine (Completed)

Chapter 15

 

“Hey squirt, how are you feeling?”  Rodin peeked and saw his daughter up and staring out the big floor to ceiling glass window.  He sighed deeply and put down his duffel bag with her clothes and approached, hugging her close to his chest he was just thankful that she is up and well on the road to recovery. Or not.

 “I’m sorry dad.  I’m sorry you had to find out like this.”  Large droplets of tears fell on his forearm that was embracing across her shoulder.  “I was going to tell you but I didn’t want you to worry and add to your problems.  Because I know that having to stop competing will cost me my scholarship.  I can’t..”

 “Shh, sweetheart I understand more than you’ll ever know.  You are all I got Cerise, do you honestly believe I would let you get hurt?”  He turned her to face him and pushed her chin up so he can look at her.  “I wish you told me sooner, I wouldn’t have pushed you.  Regardless of what happens to your scholarship, I WOULD DO ANYTHING to put you through college.  You could’ve trusted me squirt.”  And he hugged her, taking in the comfort of having his daughter whole.

 Torrents of tears came flowing, damping her dad’s shirt.  “Thanks Dad.  God knows how sorry I am for not trusting you enough.  You’re right, we only have each other.”  She wiped off her tears with the back of her hand as his dad lifted the edge of his shirt and pinched her nose to clear off remnants of her sniffles.  “Cut it out dad, I can clean my own nose.”  She grabbed a tissue from her bedside table, and sat on the edge of the bed.

“You don’t have just me Cerise.”  Her dad said to her.  Cerise side glanced at him with a questioning look.  “You have to be blind not to see how Lathan worries about you, squirt.  That guy has the hots for you and he’s totally whipped.”  He smirked.

 “Language father, geez! What are you a teenager?”  She scoffs.  “I can see that and I sure am lucky but it’s complicated dad.  It’s all too much, he’s …huge.  Imagine what other people might think, that I may just be after his money or something.  How can I live with that?”  She lay defeated on the bed.

 “Do you love him?”  He walks toward her and sat at the side of the bed pulling back the blanket. 

“I do love him dad, even knowing he was just the pool cleaner back then.  I love everything about him and I can’t imagine a day without him.”  Rodin smiles widely.

“What’s with the smile dad?” Cerise frowned.

“Funny, he says the same thing to me about you.  Gives me the hibeegibees.”  His whole body does a funny shake.

They both laughed, but she felt a sharp pain on her shoulder that made her curl up. “Arghh..Crap.”

“Are you alright?”  Rodin turned to stand beside her, concern written on his face.  “Care to tell your old man what happened to you before the competition?  And don’t say it’s nothing.  I may be old but I’m not stupid.  Dr. Cayman told me Every-thing so please, talk to me.”  Rodin held her good hand and looked pleadingly at her.

Unbidden tears flowed down her cheeks again, gulping down the guilt that has been eating her up since she started secretly having treatment for her shoulder.  She was surprised that her dad was dealing with things well than was expected.  She knew, she felt it deep down her gut that she can’t swim anymore.  Dr. Cayman doesn’t have to tell it to her face.  She knows her dreams of becoming an Olympic swimmer is near impossible to achieve now and losing her scholarship is the final nail to the coffin. 

“Two thugs came on to me at the hallway with threats to keep away from Lathan.  I did not cower in front of them so the other guy shoved me against the wall, twisting my arm with a hard slap on my face before that.  I thought that the threats had to do with me losing the competition for some sick competitor.  But no, it was all a threat to disassociate myself with Lathan or something else was going to happen.”  She was gauging her dad’s reaction and when he nodded for her to go on, she continued.