The Tribuo - 39. Part IV, chapter 11

- XI -

Tara’s eyes darted towards him.

“Nice to meet you,” she said finally. “I am Tara. I am…”

“She is living with me,” I interrupted her and looked at his expression.

He blinked at that.

“Oh, you are roommates…”

“No,” I said shortly. “She is my partner.”

If Tara starts laughing uncontrollably right now, I will probably do something drastic. She didn’t. She didn’t even flinch. Oh, thank God! This woman has nerves of steel. My father stared at her with disbelief. Then he looked at me. Finally, he cleared his throat.

“Umm… Nice to meet you, Tara,” he said, and I smirked at his dumbfounded expression.

“What do you want?” I asked and threw my keys on the little table next to the phone.

“I just want to talk to you,” he said uncomfortably.

“Talk then,” I said indifferently.

“Em,” Tara said carefully. “There is something I need to do tonight… I was about to tell you when you came… I need to leave now.”

I glared at her. I knew that there was nothing she had to do. She just wanted to leave because of my father. She wanted to give us 'privacy.' Dammit!

“I’ll be back in a couple of hours, okay?” She seemed like she didn’t even notice my glare.

“Tara…” I said, but she put on her shoes and grabbed her car keys.

“I’ll be back in a couple of hours,” she repeated. “Want me to pick something up?”

“No,” I said stiffly.

“Okay,” she nodded and swung her keys on her finger. “It was nice meeting you!” she glanced at my father.

“Nice meeting you too,” he muttered.

Tara came closer to me, placed her palm on my face, and before I could say or do something, she planted a long kiss on my lips.

“I’ll be back soon, love,” she said in a low voice and walked out.

I tried not to gasp for air, and hoped to God that my father didn’t hear my insanely loud heartbeat. I also hoped that I looked nonchalant.

“You want tea or coffee?” I asked him in a very even voice and walked into the kitchen before he answered anything.

“Yeah,” he said quietly. “Coffee would be great.”

“I only have instant.”

“That works…”

TARA

I called Seth as soon as I closed the door. I told him to get his ass to the coffee shop across from the university, and he just said, “Okay.” I got there in less than fifteen minutes, even though the traffic on the damn bridge was pretty bad. He was already there, sitting outside, his expression somewhat curious.

“Got you coffee,” he said when I dropped into the chair next to his.

I grumbled something that I hoped sounded like, “Thanks.” Several silent minutes later, I sighed and looked into his face. I would like it much more to look into his eyes, but due to his usual shades, that was out of the question. Finally, I told him about Emma’s father, their weird family reunion, and the fact that apparently, her father now thinks that we are 'partners.'

“I just didn’t want to be there,” I shrugged. “I have no idea why she acts like that around him, but it felt beyond uncomfortable.”

He shrugged.

“She might tell you.”

“She might…” I muttered and looked up. It looked like it was about to start raining again.

EMMA

He held his mug between his palms as if he was trying to warm up his hands. I looked at him semi-patiently.

“What do you want?” I asked finally and he raised his head.

“I miss you,” he said simply, and I suddenly wanted to throw something at him.

After my mother filed for divorce almost twenty years ago, he wouldn’t even send me a birthday card. Not a single phone call until after my mother died, nothing. And now, all of a sudden, he shows up here and tells me that he misses me?!

“That’s all?” I asked tightly, and he winced.

“Emma,” he said quietly. “Why didn’t you return any of my calls?”

“Because I didn’t feel like it,” I answered and drank my tea. “And you kept harassing me, so I changed my number.”

“I wasn’t harassing you…” he muttered. “I just wanted to be able to talk to you again…”

“Listen,” I sighed. “I don’t know what it is that you want right now… Ever since Mom kicked you out, you wouldn’t even wish me a happy birthday. What is it now? Fatherly instincts finally kicked in?”

He looked confused again.

“What are you talking about?” he frowned. “I always remembered your birthdays! Every single one of them!”

I laughed bitterly.

“Getting drunk doesn’t count,” I said, and he shook his head.

“Emma… I always sent you cards… Not just on your birthdays… I sent you one every week. And I sent your favorite teddy bears… I…”

“Oh, stop lying!” I hissed.

“I am not lying,” he said. “Do you remember your sixteenth birthday?”

I blinked. In fact, I did. It was one of the best days of my life. My mother never went places with me, but that day we went to the Aqua Park, and it was the best birthday ever. I loved water and swimming.

“What about it?” I asked shortly.

“I sent you tickets to the Aqua Park, and I really hoped that you would go with me,” he said. “But your mother said that you went with your friend instead… But as long as you had fun…”

I stared at him. Did he just say… No, he is lying again! Ever since Mom kicked him out of the house, she kept telling me that he wanted nothing to do with me, that he didn’t even remember my name, that he was just another useless, hopeless, weak being…

“Emma…” he started saying, and I got up.

“Get out!” I said. “You are a lying sack of crap! Get out!”

“Emma…”

“You betrayed Mom!” I screamed. “She tried to do her best, but you just kept betraying her! She filed after she found out that you slept with some fat woman, she told me! And she told me that she did it, so I could have a normal life, that…”

“No!” He got up as well. “Jesus Christ, Emma! Your mother never filed for goddamn divorce, I did!”

I stared at him silently. He pressed both of his hands against the table and closed his eyes.

“Emma, I tried everything I could to be able to get you… But I failed. I tried staying in touch with you; I tried calling, sending letters… Hell, I was even trying to bloody kidnap you!” He gritted his teeth. “But I failed… The reason I am here today is because…”

“I don’t care!” I slammed my hand against the table and he opened his eyes. “I don’t care for your reasons! You are lying, you always were! Get out of my apartment!”

“Emma…”

I grabbed my cup and threw it into the wall.

“I am not listening to you! Get out!!”

He straightened up and I thought that he was about to start saying something again. He didn’t. Instead, he just turned around and walked away. The minute I heard the door closing, I started crying.