STAY

JERK

Adrian: Reached yet?

Me: Waiting for dad to pick me up.

Jess: I am already missing you. Cant believe you wont be here for three months!

Me: You guys still have me and anyway this trip is forced on me.so u guys better entertain me when I'm bored.

Adrian: Only a call away. LOVE YOU!

Jess: Love you too...

Me: Love you three

"Chloe?"

Dad?" I say to the man who I know instantly as my father, he hasn't changed much physically since the time he would run by me when I would cycle down the streets but emotionally he is nothing like the man I knew when I was nine. He did not once come to see me all these 11 years, let alone that the fact that he never called or mailed. But now 11 years down the line this man standing right in front me suddenly reappears and convinces my mom into letting me spending my summer here with him, in Santa Monica.

Sadly, I have grown up. Definitely Changed. I am no more the girl who would cry for days waiting for her dad and thinking what we did wrong that he left.

"How is my girl?"

"Mom was with me, so yeah, I'm perfect." I say, picking up my bag and trying my best to escape the whole awkward conversation.

"Lets get home." He starts to walk dragging my suitcase and I follow suit.

We get out of the airport and the heat in the air hitting my skin is so much more soothing than the chill of Pueblo. I have always loved beaches and that is probably the only good thing about this trip. I get into his black Chevrolet, as he loads the bags for me.

Quite a lot has changed here since I last came here, when I was close to 7. We had come to meet my grandfather who happened to pass away later that year, but that trip was my favourite memory with my dad. We had gone canoeing and he and I would spend all our time at the beach.

"So I have to go out for lunch with a colleague, do you want to tag along?" dad says breaking the silence. But when I don't reply for long he says, "You can stay at home if you wish to."

"Yeah, that sounds good."

I look out the window and the perfect view hints me of just where to be.

❤❤❤

This house is way better than what I thought of it to be. I mean what kind of a man would have a beach side mansion and yet live in it alone. I bet he got some super cool job because this is way beyond what we could afford at that time.

The living room is full of pictures from my first fancy dress till the day of my graduation, what hits me is the fact that how did a man who was absent from life for the past 11 years manage to have all my perfect moments in the perfect order. But not like it matters now because at the end of it, He was not there and thats all that counts.

The kitchen on the other hand is ten times bigger than my room back in Pueblo and the number of cabinets in the kitchen itself are twice in number than the ones my mom and I have in our rooms.

'Leaving us served to be quite profitable for you.'

After a long pause, he finally says 'I have kept your bags in your room. Its down the corner to the right.' And as I walk across the kitchen to my room I hear him whisper 'Sorry' but I choose to ignore it.

My room is the best place I have ever thought of. It is exactly what I had told him to make it like when we were here, years back. At that time my dad had just looked at me with sad eyes but then he had said 'The day will come Chlo.' I had smiled up to my teeth at that time but now it seems like that smile has touched my ears. This room could compensate for my eleven birthday gifts, but not for the absence of eleven whole years.

'Like it?' my dad says leaning against the door.

'Yeah.'

He waits for me to say something beyond that but I stay shut. He finally gives in and says 'I am leaving, there is a cycle outside and another car in the garage. Hope to see you for dinner.'

❤❤❤

I tag my black tank with my denim shorts and go to the garage to take out my new cycle. Its the perfect yellow, now all I need is a bagel to munch on. As I cycle down the roads, I see a couple of people playing volleyball down at the beach and I plan on hitting there; but after the bagel.

I pick up my bagel and find a perfect recliner to read. But it is only a few pages after that my peaceful and quiet vicinity has changed to a series of moans and groans. I look to my right only to find a half-naked blonde pouring herself over some tattooed junkie with umber brown hair.

'Get a room.'

That is when he looks at me and *SILENCE*

There have been good looking men in Pueblo but this figure is godly, sadly he is not my type. But as those hazel eyes look back at me, I feel as if its time for me to change my type.

He turns around and almost shoves the blonde head off the recliner and says, 'Catch you later.'

'But we just started baby, don't you want to stop by my house Liam?' My parents are out today.

Oh. So he is called Liam. Good looking people with good names.

'I have somewhere to be.'

She makes that puppy face but when it does not work on him she flips her hair and walks off and I manage a giggle.

'Amusing?' he asks, cocking a brow at me.

'I am sorry, I did not mean to interrupt your ummm...your...moment.'

He ignores my statement and lies down on the recliner. I resume my reading until he breaks the silence again.

'Never seen you around.'

'Yeah, I am just here to visit my dad.'

'Knew that I would not have missed that red hair.'

What the hell? I mean wasn't he just kissing his girlfriend? I chose not to reply and have read just another line when, for the third time in a row.

'Are you just here to meet your father?' he asks cocking that brow once again and adding a smirk to that look.

'Did you not have somewhere to be?' I ask changing the topic.

'Oh yeah, until this red head got me distracted.'

Setting my book aside, I turn to him and as if taking some meaning out of my actions, he turns toward me too.

'So, do we need to start off with a meal or will it take a long time before we could be somewhere private?' He winks.

I think your eyes are already doing the magic. I say flirting back and batting my lashes.

The next thing I know, he is already holding my hand and we are against the side of a surf board shop.

'Care to join me sometime later as well?' he asks leaning in.

'Live in the moment baby.' I reply cockily.

And just as he bends further and almost places his lips on mine, I kick his junk.

'Just hope that your girlfriend does not meet me any time soon or else she shall know about our little encounter.'

Jerk.