Spotlights. Ant & Dec | ✔️

Chapter 12: Watching over you

5 Days Later...

"Hey decky, it's Cam."

"Please leave me be."

"I'm sorry Declan but Ant said you've not been eating, I just want to make sure you're alright sweetie."

"I'm fine and I'm not hungry."

"Declan Donnelly you are far from fine." Cam said as she came to sit on the bed, taking a watery-eyed Dec in her arms. "But that's okay, your hurting and you are allowed to be upset. But don't punish yourself for this Decky, it's not your fault."

"It is my fault Cam, I should have been there! I should have been there to help! I should have done something!" The broken Geordie exclaimed, sobbing into his sisters shoulder.

"We both know you are not the one to blame for that Declan, you weren't here because we all made a huge mistake, which we've regretted ever since. And you need to know Declan, Dad didn't die hating you, he loved you more than life itself and it broke his heart to know he drove you away." This only made Dec cry more as the good memories of his father flashed before his eyes. "Look mam wanted to give this to you but I think you need it now. I'll leave it with you. You don't have to open now."

"What is it?" Dec said sniffing, pulling away from his sisters embrace as she dug in her handbag.

"Dad wrote this letter to you before he passed. No one has opened it. Anth is making dinner down there, please go down and eat something... it hurts him to see you hurting."

"Okay... Thankyou Cam, Love you."

"I love you too Decky." She smiled kissing his head gently.

Dec watched her walk from the room, wiping his eyes, before looking down at the envelope, labelled simply 'Declan', and twisting it around in his hands. Quickly wiping away the last of the dampness beneath his blue green eyes, the young Geordie began to peel open the envelop with shaking hands to take out the letter inside.

Dear Declan,

If you're reading this it means Ive past away and I didn't get to see you again before I left this world. This is certainly not how I imagined my apology and farewell but I realised a long time ago that it was my fault and what I deserved.

It's terribly hard to sum up how sorry I am in a short letter so bare with me while I try... I want you to know that anything and everything I said that night I didn't mean, at the time I thought I was doing the right thing and I know that is no excuse. My behaviour was inexcusable, I see that now. I was too blinded by out of date breeding and ideals to see that who you love does not change who you are and It is the shame of my life that it took losing you to see that. I remember the day you were born, when I first held you in arms, you were so much smaller than your brothers and sisters, more fragile. But you had the most beautiful of eyes, that could spark life into any dying flame, I knew from that day how special you were and I knew how much I loved you, that love never died Declan it was alway there, it had just gotten lost but it was never hard to find.

I wish I could have lived to have seen the man you have become but I have not an ounce of doubt that I would be proud of him. I have always been proud of you Declan and I have always - I will always love you.