Roofers.

34. Uptown Nature.

Scarlett POV.

I was starting to wonder why I never liked sticking to the nicer side of town, most days I went straight to the centre where school was and if I wasn't there, I preferred to stay farther down, in the Valley. But it was nice here, despite the snooty rich folk that wandered around with their upturned noses and self-absorbed demeanour, as if that would bring them up in the ranks around here. I would say no one cared for that stuff anyway, but to be truthful, the people in uptown Astonville did care, deeply. But it was nice nonetheless. It was cleaner, and the seats were more comfy; I guess they'd been less worn out because not everyone could really afford this type of venue.

The smell of brewing coffee and newly baked goods made the warm cafe air seem sweet enough to taste. It's a modern place, it held onto an earthy, forest aesthetic that I found comforting.  It was quiet, but not quite enough to convince you that you were alone. A gentle rumbling kept the cafe alive. 

I sat with my hot chocolate in front of me, beside it a large vanilla muffin, besides that a large chocolate chip cookie and finally on the other end of the weirdly small table sat my dad. I guess I wasn't around him long enough to fight off the old man dressing stage. He was wearing a beige old man cardigan at the age of 39, along with a pair of worn-out grey slacks and a hideous grey golfer hat. As if just he just couldn't wait to be considered an elder.

The right words hadn't come yet. So we sat in a sort of still silence, snagging small bits of our food as we filled it with apologies we didn't think needed to be said.

"So how've you been" he eventually asked. My eyes wandered to him like confused cockroaches, zipping from place to place before landing on him. His face still looked as hard and as soft as it always had.  He almost looked funny, sitting in a seat that was a tad too small and a table that was a tad too small too. Like a giant trying to sit at a dinner table, but he made do with it. There were no other seats. 

"Hasn't mom told you yet?" I laughed, not sure how to say what I had to.

"She told me what happened not why, I'm guessing the why is the reason you called" He replied.

"I broke someone's nose" I shrugged, I swear I tried to sneak in a hint of remorse, even if it had to be fake, but it came out the way I felt, apathetic. My dad eyed me scrutinously, taking a long sip of his coffee as if in wait for me to say what I'd really called him here for. "I need your advice on something, " I admitted, removing my sights from him to gather my thoughts.

"Of course." He replied, joy returning to him as it always used to.

"Last time we... fought. I told you that I was reverse, and that I had a submissive," I explained, shrugging into myself like a toddler who'd been scolded. 

"You did. Is that what this is about?" He asks me. I nod, sadly unable to bear the way he raised a suspicious brow at me.

"It's just that my submissive and I have been together for a few months, we were keeping it under wraps because at the time neither of us were really ready for people to know"

"Mhm," my dad nodded, concentrating on what I was saying. I felt my heart squeeze at the knowledge that he was genuinely paying attention to me. For the first time in a long time; he was right there.

"Everything was going good for a while but as time went on having to keep things on the low was taking a toll on the both of us. Last week we were a party after he got back from camp and we danced together — we ended up leaving together too... The thing is, someone took a video and..."

"And?"

"And then I found out my submissive told people about my attribute to get out of hot water. Some douche called Orlando walked up to me at school and called me a Roofer and the rest is history" I explained.