WOUNDED

7. Dada

 Alex was on the way to meet her father. Her 'baby' had been thoroughly cleaned and polished and was smelling divine from the inside. She had named the car 'pato' from a childhood cartoon and the grey Renault was her pride being her first meaningful purchase. Her mother as expected had thrown a fit after seeing the car saying she could have asked her father for a new car instead of buying the 'shameful second hand'. As if their father needed more burden after the court disaster and having to pay for all their school fees.
      
Learning from a young age not to argue with her mum she'd brushed off the hurtful remark and walked away. At the beginning Alex had tried reasoning with her mum and explaining different things from her view but that was then. Her mother was a lost cause and after alot of tears she'd decided it wasn't worth it.
      
Susan was hell bent on living in the clouds and having the 'proper' family. With all the social attendances and unneeded shopping that she insisted on dragging her daughters to, she was the epitome of poise. With her lifestyle, the financial fights had been very common to Alex from a young age. With both parents working in successful businesses, it hadn't been bad at the beginning but her mother had proceeded to overdo things as usual and the disagreements had increased.
             
Alex believed that the daily fights had driven her father away. Soon their loving dad had started getting home late and other days not coming back at all. She had been the closest to her dad and Alex could see the subtle changes in her father. From the slight stumble that had always been clean shaven to the tired eyes all the time,it had been a clear indication that things were horribly wrong.
     
From there it had only gotten worse to loud open shouting when her father came home. The once peaceful dinners that Alex liked had turned to a battle ground to her sisters taking sides. Those days she'd hide in her bedroom and cry where her dad would find her and tell her that everything would be alright. Then the deal breaker had arrived, rumours that her father was having an affair.
     
Dave had been a prominent man in their town, the perfect husband and father,and the rumours had destroyed them. From the odd looks in school and whispers in the streets, everyone knew he was drinking and cheating. Being her father's daughter, Alex had been devastated and those days had been the hardest.
       
Their mother, being the opportunist she was hadn't hesitated rushing to court asking for a divorce. Dragging her daughters along to testify against their father was one of the things Alex would never forgive her for. Amongst her sisters she was the only one who didn't comply. With their mother's guidance they gave exaggerated testimonies of false fights that had painted their dad as the villain. On top of loosing custody, he had to pay large amounts of money to his wife till the kids became of age.
    
From there the family had been completely broken. Her big sister Janice had chosen to get angry at their father and cut all communication. Maria had taken her anger on all parents whereas the perfect daughter Samantha was very much in line with whatever bullshit their mother fed her.
      
Alexis after a whole year of anger and resentment decided to reach out and get his dad's side of the story. Seeing her dad after a whole year had been devastating. The one strong and confident man was all withered and broken down. And to think that the whole family had turned against him had been a blow to her gut and the guilt had been much. They had allowed their mother to brainwash them and had turned against the most loving parent they had.
         
After crying their eyes out together, Alexis had continued to mend her relationship with her dad and it had been steadfast ever since. Looking back now, she couldn't even understand how their father had survived in that marriage. Dave was in a good place now and Alex couldn't be more proud of her dad. He'd gotten back to shape and had quit drinking. At almost 50 years he was looking good and could pass for late thirties. He was happy again. Five years after the divorce, he was more radiant than before and despite the circumstances, she was happy that his father was no longer trapped in that marriage.
      
Parking the car at the only available space, Alex looked out at the beautiful site that was prenton hotel where she was meeting her father. She could spot him near the entrance waving at her and a full smile lit her face. Walking towards him, Alex couldn't remember when she felt such joy in the two weeks she'd been at home. Her father picked her up easily in a twirl and she could feel the tears that she didn't bother holding back.
       
"I've missed my baby so much. I'm so happy to see you". Hearing his voice was music to her ears. Surely, home is where your heart is.