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- 09/07/2011
- 1,082 Words
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Note: While authors are asked to place warnings on their stories for some moderated content, everyone has different thresholds, and it is your responsibility as a reader to avoid stories or stop reading if something bothers you.
2011 - Fall - Legends Entry
Adam - 1. Chapter 1
Adam
What makes a legend? Does it involve heroism with a hint of magic and mystery? Self sacrifice, perhaps? That one act for the good of many. Courage, putting others’ welfare before one’s self, steadfast devotion and charisma seem to be the ingredients that make a good legend. Something big and elaborate. ‘Legends are not made, they are born’, they say. Maybe they are right. Ignore what I said; of course they’re right.
Hear my story. This is not a legend. It’s a simple story of a man whom nobody remembers. Not one, except for me.
My story begins like that of any legend although, as I said, it is not. It happened ‘once upon a time...’
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Adam Lane: that was the man’s name. Average looks, medium build and height, and middle-class. He was a good man.
Late one night, a knock came on his door. He lived alone and had no surviving relatives. His forehead creased slightly as he went to answer the knock. ‘Who could that be?’ he wondered. Adam didn’t get many visitors; he lived a somewhat secluded life. The frown deepened when he found the porch empty.
‘Weird!’ Weird, indeed for the porch wasn’t empty as he first thought it was. A few inches from where he stood lay a crib with a note attached to it. Reading the note, Adam knelt and unfurled the cover of the crib. ‘This is your son,’ the note said, signed by the woman he used to go out with. A baby wrapped in a light blue blanket looked back with silent interest at him. There was no doubt in Adam’s mind that this was his son; the baby had his gray eyes, deep red wavy hair and the same dimple on the right cheek. The man extended his hand and the baby grasped it with his two small hands; they both smiled.
The next day, with the baby in his arms, Adam went to his boss requesting permission to work from home. ‘You don’t really need me at the office everyday and you’ll save on overhead and overtime costs if I do my assigned projects at my house. I promise to be here when absolutely necessary.’ Adam worked as a web designer. The boss looked at father and son and he remembered his own children. What he’d give to spend more time with them. Shaking his head as if he couldn’t believe what he was doing, the boss granted Adam his request. And so the days passed that Adam worked from home while taking care of his son, Caleb. The neighbors urged Adam to marry so Caleb would have a mother to take care of him.
“Caleb already has a mother,” Adam stated.
To which the neighbor replied, “But where is she? Stop being stubborn, Adam! A woman’s touch is needed in this circumstance. Plus you need taking care of too.”
“Well then I have no need for a woman!” Adam said with finality.
This fueled the rumor that Adam was gay. He heard the whisperings behind his back, but he took no heed. Instead, he focused his attention on his son whom he loved with all his heart.
Caleb grew up looking more and more like his father. When he learned to walk, he broke all of Adam’s vases as he staggered to his feet; Adam cleaned up the mess with a smile on his lips. Learning to run, Caleb scraped his knees; Adam cleaned his wounds and gave him chocolates to munch on. Once he learned to ride his bike, he broke his arm; Adam took care of him and baked him his favorite cake. While learning to climb a tree, he fell down; Adam was so relieved that he was alright except for a few cuts.
One afternoon, Adam stopped what he was typing on the computer when he heard the front door open and close signaling Caleb’s arrival; his son was a teenager by then. Glad to see his son home, he didn’t notice the frown on Caleb’s face as he extended his arms to hug him. Caleb pushed him away with a disgusted look on his face before he could embrace him.
Concern flashed on Adam’s face. “What’s wrong?”
“You’re gay!” Caleb shouted.
If the man was surprised, he didn’t show it. In a calm voice, he said, “You’ve been listening to rumors, son. I would appreciate it if you stop this nonsense. Let me tell you this: there is nothing wrong with being gay. Anyone who says otherwise is a hypocrite.”
“‘There’s nothing wrong with being gay.’ That’s exactly what a faggot would say!” Caleb looked at his father defiantly, daring him to say that he wasn’t gay.
But Adam remained silent. He looked at his son with disappointment in his eyes. After that, the two barely talked to each other.
The gap between the two ensued for quite some time and would have prolonged if Caleb hadn’t had his heart broken. The schoolmate he liked didn’t like him back. With tears in his eyes, he meekly approached his father and Adam wrapped his arms around his son.
Despite that brief moment of estrangement, the father and son were as close as could be. Caleb hero-worshipped his father and Adam’s world revolved around his son.
Deafening silence filled the room when Adam told Caleb about his illness. Caleb was on his final year of college at the time. The son looked at his father with tears brimming in his eyes. He didn’t know what to do. Meanwhile, his father returned his gaze with a smile on his lips.
“I have a year left. Please don’t be sad, Caleb. I am leaving this world a happy man because I have you. If not for you, I would have died alone.” Adam extended his hand and wiped the tears off of Caleb’s face.
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The story ends like the closing of any legend, ‘Adam died.’ Unlike other legends though, he didn’t die a hero; he merely passed away. He closed his eyes, took his last breath and left this world. Caleb sat beside him, holding his hand. The son wailed and grieved alone.
As I mentioned earlier, this is not a legend. This is the story of a man who taught me how to love unconditionally. Yes, Adam was my father. He made me what I am today. I miss him so much.
Dad, I love you...
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Note: While authors are asked to place warnings on their stories for some moderated content, everyone has different thresholds, and it is your responsibility as a reader to avoid stories or stop reading if something bothers you.
2011 - Fall - Legends Entry
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