SimplyConfused
War Child
Disclaimer: Not true, as you know
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Holy feck! He- he- he just admitted it! Here was my father, standing right in front of me. This was the day I’d been waiting for, for five years. I just stared up at him in shock.
“Holy feck! I- I- I can’t believe it’s you!” The tears came down more now. I threw my arms around him and gave him a tight embrace. With my head buried in his chest somewhere, I asked, “Why did you ever leave? Why did you put us through all that pain and suffering?”
He sighed again. “I just wanted a break. From everything. I’m so sorry I never told you, Jojo.” He called me Jojo! How much I missed that…
“A break? For five years?” I asked, disbelievingly.
“No. At the start it was only meant to be a couple of weeks, but the more I left it, the more distant the idea became and in the end I just stayed here. But I’m so glad I found you. I saw you the other day but panicked and ran. Then I followed you, to make sure you were OK. You’re still my little girl, Jojo. No matter how old you will be, you’ll always be my little girl and I’ll always worry about you. And when I saw that wanker try to mug you, well you know, I got so angry. How could someone do that to my little girl?” He rubbed my back and I just cried into him. His voice was starting breaking now too.
“So, you going to come back to Ireland now?” I asked. My head was still against his chest and I could hear his heart beat quicken. My tears had stopped, yet again.
“Well… erm… I don’t know… I can’t…” He pulled out of my arms and backed away.
“Why not? Please, I’ve missed you these five years. Not to mention Ma’, Eve, John and Elijah. And what about your friends? I know Edge hasn’t been the same without you. He hardly ever comes out of his room anymore, or so Morleigh tells me. And I don’t doubt her. When he does, he’s always so tense and wound up. Larry has actually become the mean and moody man that he always presented to the media. Adam is sometimes the only sane one around. But even he goes into a little daze now and then. Everyone thinks your dead you know? I’m the only one who ever believed you would be alive. And now I’ve found you, you just can’t go again,” I said, breaking down near the end. “Please, just come back.”
“I’m so sorry Jordan, but I-” He sighed. “I have reasons for not going back. I’ll see you again, I swear it, but I’m not ready to go back. I’m so sorry.” He stepped towards me and gave me a hug before he ran down the alley.
“Wait!” I called out, but it was no use. He’d already gone. Abandoned me for the second time in my life. I sank to my knees and sobbed uncontrollably and inconsolably into my knees. After a while I screamed, so Jack would come get me. I didn’t feel like walking back. I was so worn. Emotionally and physically.
I sat there for about twenty minutes, waiting for Jack to come. When he didn’t, I sighed heavily, wiped my eyes and got up. Making my way back to the hotel, I almost bumped into someone. I was not in any mood to be nice.
“Watch where you’re going, arse!” I snapped.
“Jordan! Where have you been?” I immediately wished I hadn’t said those words. It was Jack. “I heard someone scream and you’d been gone for about an hour. I so worried.” He stopped when he saw my face. I must have been a sight. All red and puffy, the familiar symptoms after one cries so much. “What’s wrong?”
“Well… I was coming out of the shop when I was mugged. Well almost.” I paused.
“What? You were mugged?” he asked. He looked horrified. He leapt to my side and held me against him. It was rather cold and I was shivering. “Let’s get back to the hotel and you can tell me about it then.”
He guided me back to the hotel and helped me up to our suite. Setting me down on the bed, he made some coffee for the both of us. He sat down, cross-legged, on the bed next to me and handed me a mug of coffee.
“Right, so what happened?” he asked.
“Well, as I said, I was almost mugged. What stopped the would-be-mugger was the man who I thought was my father. You know, the one who I ran after a few days ago? Yeah, well, he scared the bastard off and as it turned out, it was my dad. He wouldn’t admit it at first but then I managed to get him to. We talked about why he went and I tried to convince him to come back. But- but- he wouldn’t. Then, he ran off, abandoning me yet again. So I was just sitting there for half an hour and… and…” I couldn’t speak anymore and I broke down into Jack’s arms.
The rest of the holiday was affected by my encounter with my father, and I didn’t enjoy it as much. Jack noticed and tried to make me feel better, but it just wasn’t working.
We got back home and unpacked. We went round to my mother’s later on in the day, so she could see us. She’s always worried about us, is Ali. For the last five years. She really was an admirable person. She had four kids to bring up on her own but still found time to help with the Chernobyl victims. Well, I suppose she only has two to look after now, me having my own apartment and at university and Eve also away at Uni. Still, it doesn’t stop her worrying about us.
I rang the door bell and she opened the door to let us both in. I tried to put up a happy front, but it wouldn’t fool Ma’. I didn’t want to upset her, so I just said we had a bad plane journey. She bought it, or at least she believed it for my sake. We walked into the living room and I noted John and Elijah watching some random cartoon.
“Hey guys,” I said to them. They hardly moved their heads but made a limp movement with their arms. I chuckled and made my way to the dining room. Eve was sitting at the table.
“Hiya Jordan. How are you?” she asked upon us entering the room. “Hey Jack. Did you have a nice time down under?”
“Yeah, very enjoyable. I would recommend it,” Jack replied. I was rather silent.
“Is something the matter?” she asked me. I’m not usually silent and I must have alerted her of my withdrawal. I looked up.
“Oh, no I’m fine,” I answered believably, but I gave her a look. Ma’ had just walked in the room and I didn’t to alert her. Eve returned the look and she stood up. We left Jack in the room and said Eve was just going to show me something. We made out way up to her bedroom.
“What happened? Did you and Jack fall out?” she asked as soon as the door was shut.
“If Jack and I fell out, do you think we would be here right now?”
“Dumb question, OK. So what happened?” she asked.
“Well, when we were in Australia,” I started. I paused and looked for the right words. I told her what had happened with Dad and everything. When I finished, Eve look so shocked that it looked like her eyes were gonna pop out of her head.
“Oh my feckin’ God!” She closed her eyes and looked at me again. “Are you sure it was him?”
“He admitted it, didn’t he? He knew my name and… and everything! It’s got to be him! He was the bloody spit of him.”
“OK, OK, so what we going to do about it?” she asked.
“I don’t know. I just want to forget it. He said he’ll see us someday. What I don’t understand is why he wouldn’t come back.”
We heard the door being opened downstairs and heard it was Adam.
“I think you should tell Adam. He’ll know what to do.” Eve looked at me and I knew she was right. I sighed and stood up.
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OK, that's it for now.
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Holy feck! He- he- he just admitted it! Here was my father, standing right in front of me. This was the day I’d been waiting for, for five years. I just stared up at him in shock.
“Holy feck! I- I- I can’t believe it’s you!” The tears came down more now. I threw my arms around him and gave him a tight embrace. With my head buried in his chest somewhere, I asked, “Why did you ever leave? Why did you put us through all that pain and suffering?”
He sighed again. “I just wanted a break. From everything. I’m so sorry I never told you, Jojo.” He called me Jojo! How much I missed that…
“A break? For five years?” I asked, disbelievingly.
“No. At the start it was only meant to be a couple of weeks, but the more I left it, the more distant the idea became and in the end I just stayed here. But I’m so glad I found you. I saw you the other day but panicked and ran. Then I followed you, to make sure you were OK. You’re still my little girl, Jojo. No matter how old you will be, you’ll always be my little girl and I’ll always worry about you. And when I saw that wanker try to mug you, well you know, I got so angry. How could someone do that to my little girl?” He rubbed my back and I just cried into him. His voice was starting breaking now too.
“So, you going to come back to Ireland now?” I asked. My head was still against his chest and I could hear his heart beat quicken. My tears had stopped, yet again.
“Well… erm… I don’t know… I can’t…” He pulled out of my arms and backed away.
“Why not? Please, I’ve missed you these five years. Not to mention Ma’, Eve, John and Elijah. And what about your friends? I know Edge hasn’t been the same without you. He hardly ever comes out of his room anymore, or so Morleigh tells me. And I don’t doubt her. When he does, he’s always so tense and wound up. Larry has actually become the mean and moody man that he always presented to the media. Adam is sometimes the only sane one around. But even he goes into a little daze now and then. Everyone thinks your dead you know? I’m the only one who ever believed you would be alive. And now I’ve found you, you just can’t go again,” I said, breaking down near the end. “Please, just come back.”
“I’m so sorry Jordan, but I-” He sighed. “I have reasons for not going back. I’ll see you again, I swear it, but I’m not ready to go back. I’m so sorry.” He stepped towards me and gave me a hug before he ran down the alley.
“Wait!” I called out, but it was no use. He’d already gone. Abandoned me for the second time in my life. I sank to my knees and sobbed uncontrollably and inconsolably into my knees. After a while I screamed, so Jack would come get me. I didn’t feel like walking back. I was so worn. Emotionally and physically.
I sat there for about twenty minutes, waiting for Jack to come. When he didn’t, I sighed heavily, wiped my eyes and got up. Making my way back to the hotel, I almost bumped into someone. I was not in any mood to be nice.
“Watch where you’re going, arse!” I snapped.
“Jordan! Where have you been?” I immediately wished I hadn’t said those words. It was Jack. “I heard someone scream and you’d been gone for about an hour. I so worried.” He stopped when he saw my face. I must have been a sight. All red and puffy, the familiar symptoms after one cries so much. “What’s wrong?”
“Well… I was coming out of the shop when I was mugged. Well almost.” I paused.
“What? You were mugged?” he asked. He looked horrified. He leapt to my side and held me against him. It was rather cold and I was shivering. “Let’s get back to the hotel and you can tell me about it then.”
He guided me back to the hotel and helped me up to our suite. Setting me down on the bed, he made some coffee for the both of us. He sat down, cross-legged, on the bed next to me and handed me a mug of coffee.
“Right, so what happened?” he asked.
“Well, as I said, I was almost mugged. What stopped the would-be-mugger was the man who I thought was my father. You know, the one who I ran after a few days ago? Yeah, well, he scared the bastard off and as it turned out, it was my dad. He wouldn’t admit it at first but then I managed to get him to. We talked about why he went and I tried to convince him to come back. But- but- he wouldn’t. Then, he ran off, abandoning me yet again. So I was just sitting there for half an hour and… and…” I couldn’t speak anymore and I broke down into Jack’s arms.
The rest of the holiday was affected by my encounter with my father, and I didn’t enjoy it as much. Jack noticed and tried to make me feel better, but it just wasn’t working.
We got back home and unpacked. We went round to my mother’s later on in the day, so she could see us. She’s always worried about us, is Ali. For the last five years. She really was an admirable person. She had four kids to bring up on her own but still found time to help with the Chernobyl victims. Well, I suppose she only has two to look after now, me having my own apartment and at university and Eve also away at Uni. Still, it doesn’t stop her worrying about us.
I rang the door bell and she opened the door to let us both in. I tried to put up a happy front, but it wouldn’t fool Ma’. I didn’t want to upset her, so I just said we had a bad plane journey. She bought it, or at least she believed it for my sake. We walked into the living room and I noted John and Elijah watching some random cartoon.
“Hey guys,” I said to them. They hardly moved their heads but made a limp movement with their arms. I chuckled and made my way to the dining room. Eve was sitting at the table.
“Hiya Jordan. How are you?” she asked upon us entering the room. “Hey Jack. Did you have a nice time down under?”
“Yeah, very enjoyable. I would recommend it,” Jack replied. I was rather silent.
“Is something the matter?” she asked me. I’m not usually silent and I must have alerted her of my withdrawal. I looked up.
“Oh, no I’m fine,” I answered believably, but I gave her a look. Ma’ had just walked in the room and I didn’t to alert her. Eve returned the look and she stood up. We left Jack in the room and said Eve was just going to show me something. We made out way up to her bedroom.
“What happened? Did you and Jack fall out?” she asked as soon as the door was shut.
“If Jack and I fell out, do you think we would be here right now?”
“Dumb question, OK. So what happened?” she asked.
“Well, when we were in Australia,” I started. I paused and looked for the right words. I told her what had happened with Dad and everything. When I finished, Eve look so shocked that it looked like her eyes were gonna pop out of her head.
“Oh my feckin’ God!” She closed her eyes and looked at me again. “Are you sure it was him?”
“He admitted it, didn’t he? He knew my name and… and everything! It’s got to be him! He was the bloody spit of him.”
“OK, OK, so what we going to do about it?” she asked.
“I don’t know. I just want to forget it. He said he’ll see us someday. What I don’t understand is why he wouldn’t come back.”
We heard the door being opened downstairs and heard it was Adam.
“I think you should tell Adam. He’ll know what to do.” Eve looked at me and I knew she was right. I sighed and stood up.
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OK, that's it for now.
what a hero he is!Keep up the good work hon
