In Your Eyes ✧ Timothée Chalamet

32 - okay?

E L L A

The figure looming behind me tries to be as quiet as possible. But I heard him the moment he exited the church and I don't hesitate to let him know his presence has been acknowledged by me. 'Timmy please go away. I'm in no mood to be lectured right now.'

I cover the bite mark on my shoulder fast so he doesn't see it and start to question me but then he starts to talk, and his voice startles me because I wasn't expecting it to sound so different. 'Well then, I guess I won't give you a lecture.' I turn around, shocked to not find Timothée but instead my Uncle towering over me with a somber smile on his face.

He looks very gentle. Excluding how gigantically tall he is and how his deep voice sounds so much like my fathers. I still know deep down, just by looking at him, that he'd never hurt a fly. It's an instinct I have. I can make out a good person from a really bad one and Robert Myers isn't bad. He's not bad at all.

But if that's the case then why am I so afraid of him right now?

'I'm sorry I ran out like that. It was all just so overwhelming.' I explain politely to the man who was a stranger to me minutes ago, but now happens to be one of my only blood relatives apart from my brother of course.

'Don't apologize. I would have done the same if I were you.' Silence settles over us. It should be uncomfortable, but it isn't. I take a puff of my cigarette, which I whipped out seconds ago and I wipe a tear form my face, which happened to still linger on my cheek from earlier when I was crying. I look down at my shoulder again to make sure my bite mark is completely covered up. Because there's no need for him to catch a glimpse of it and think I'm a freak.

He finally breaks the silence. 'Ella I'm sorry I didn't know you sooner.'

'You don't even know me now.' I retort and I don't mean to sound so bitter, but I'm hurting. And the words just start to pour out of me without me meaning for them to. He takes a step forward, trying to find my gaze but I turn away, facing the road instead and watching the cars pass us both by in a rush. I don't want to look at him right now, if I do I might start crying all over again.

'I'd like to get to know you and your brother. I'd really like to get to know you both, if you'll let me.' He sounds so genuine. But I don't want to listen to this right now. It's making my heart crumple as I feel a sense of deja vu because I've had this dream before. I've heard these exact words being said to me in a hazy fantasy i've had on repeat since I was a little girl. Except it wasn't him that was saying those words to me.

It was my own father.

All my life, I wanted my father to get to know me. I wanted him to love me. I wanted him to call me his little princess, to protect me from any and all harm, and to treat me like I was his everything. But my wish never came true. And I thought I had all the time in the world to make it happen, but I didn't. He's gone now. I swallow hard before replying. 'Why?' I ask. 'Why would you want that?'

Robert looks at me like the answer is so obvious. 'Because you're my niece. You're my family. You, me and your brother.. we're all family.' I finally turn around to face him, trying my best not to let his face be blurred by the tears in my eyes.

'That's not enough.' I mutter and Robert takes another step towards me but I immediately step back in fear.

'Okay fine. You wanna know the real reason?' He asks and I hesitate for a moment, but then I nod my head slowly and I watch his lips curl upwards as he watches me with his deep blue eyes. 'I never had children. My wife had two miscarriages and she died a few years ago from breast cancer. She always wanted kids, I wanted them just as badly as her but we never got to make that dream happen.' He sighs. 'This is my chance to make both our dreams come true. For me and for my wife.'