Single Parent. (A short fanfiction)

After School

The bell rang loudly through the speakers and the students flooded out of every classroom, relieved to go home. Piper and Jess raced to the gates to reunite with their father once again. Although Piper stopped at the sight of Ryan, Jess didn't and kept on running until she crashed into Ryan's arms, giggling. "Daddy!"
"Hey, Jess!" Ryan smiled and lifted her into a tight hug, causing her to giggle. When he spotted Piper, he waved. "How was school?"
"Normal," Piper replied, shrugging.
"Good!" Jess answered with a toothy grin. "We don't get homework anymore because it's the second last week of the school year!"
Ryan faked a gasp. "What? No more homework?" he asked with exaggerated shock. Jess nodded, giggling at his silly behaviour.
Piper smiled at Jess' joy before frowning, looking around. By now, almost all of the parents and their children are either already gone or are getting ready to leave, so it was easy for him to spot the man Ryan was talking with earlier in the day.
Nathan gave Piper a smile that sent shivers down his spine. Ryan looked in the direction Piper stared at and also frowned. Jess later followed their gaze. Nathan waved and approached them all slowly.

"Nice to meet again, Ryan," Nathan said quietly.
"You..."
Nathan raised an eyebrow and looked at Piper, who seemed to shake with wrath. "Me?"
"You..." Piper stepped in front of Ryan and Jess, exclaiming, "Stay away from my family or I'll kill you! You... you... despicable person!" Jess whimpered in fear at Piper's yell, holding onto Ryan tighter.
Nathan chuckled and slowly clapped his hands. "Amazing! Despicable is a big word, kiddo. Can you spell it?"
"My name is Piper!"
Before the young boy could say anything more, Ryan grabbed his shoulder with one hand, still carrying Jess. He whispered in a stern voice, "Piper, that is enough. Do not waste your time with this man."
Piper gritted his teeth and reluctantly stomped into the car, watching from the opened window. Ryan turned to enter the car as well, helping the terrified Jess into her car seat. He slammed the door shut and approached Nathan once more, muttering, "Get out of my sight, please. These children don't need any more stress."
Nathan nodded, but they both knew that it wasn't genuine. "You care so much for your young boy and my young girl. Sometimes, I wonder how you manage to take care of them, especially with your static vision. Does your young boy have visual snow, too? I'm sure your young girl doesn't, though."
Ryan didn't answer and turned away, returning to the car and entering the driver's seat. He started the engine and began driving away. Nathan watched them leave until they took a turn, out of sight. He narrowed his eyes, his smile fading. "I will get my hands on that girl," he said under his breath, leaving the school grounds. "She was never supposed to be alive."

During the drive home, the two children remained silent for a long while, thoughts dashing through their heads. For the whole year, Nathan would always pay them a short visit after school, only to aggravate Ryan, as well as Piper and scaring Jess. Eventually, Piper asked, "Dad, what's visual snow?"
They stopped at a red light, and Ryan glanced at him. "Where did you hear that from?" he asked with a hint of concern.
"The window was opened when you two were talking," Piper explained. "I heard him asking if I have visual snow. What is it?"
The green light turned on, and the car moved again. "Well, visual snow is when your vision is static-like. You know, what you see on TV channels that don't work. You father has that."
This made Piper uneasy. "Can you see properly?"
"Don't worry, I can see alright. I'm not blind," Ryan replied with a chuckle. "Everything looks a bit strange, though."
Piper stayed silent after that, giving Jess a chance to speak. "Daddy, I heard the talking, too. He said that I was his girl. I'm not, right?" She began to tear up. "Daddy, did you steal me from him?"
Piper bit his bottom lip, anxious for their father's reply. He knew exactly what Nathan was talking about. He was told about it during the fifth month of the year, when Nathan kept talking about things Piper didn't completely understand. Ryan explained everything to him, from the love affair to their mother's death. At first, he didn't want to believe the disturbing news, but slowly he accepted the facts.
Ryan didn't want to explain, thinking that Jess was too young to comprehend anything. He lied, "Jess, your mind is too young to be able to understand. Once you're twelve, like Piper, then your mind will understand. You still need to keep on learning until your brain knows a lot of things."
Jess sadly sighed. "It will take a long time until I'm twelve! I want to know now!"
Ryan didn't say anything and focused on driving. Jess grumbled and crossed her arms, while Piper leaned on the window, watching the trees and houses fly by.