Ronen doesn’t even know where to begin comprehending how he feels. He doesn’t know what to do, what to say, how to understand the rush of emotions, most of them incredibly and overwhelmingly good until they begin to mingle with bad, with guilt, with an awful sense of misery at the fact that he wasn’t here. He wasn’t here when his father came back. He wasn’t here when David would’ve needed to see him. He’s lost time with the man who gave him a life.
Still, he needs to find his father. Whatever he feels, he knows he needs to see David. He couldn’t possibly do anything else but rush to his father’s side, even if the man is angry with him for his disappearing act. And when he finally sees him.. for a moment, Ronen freezes. Then takes a step. Then another. And another, crossing the space between himself and his father until suddenly he’s right in front of him, looking into David’s eyes, terrified of the anger he’s sure he’ll find there. “Dad..” He gasps weakly, eyes widening, raising a hand to reach out - but terrified that if he touches him David will disappear and Ronen will be alone again. “Y-you’re really.. alive?” [ @lxgions ]
There Isn’t a day that went by where David doesn’t think about his son. Where he doesn’t worry or fret or try to think of somewhere new to try and look for Ronen. So when he sees his son in front of him he is not totally sure he should believe his eyes at first. He doesn’t know if it is safe to have enough faith in his mind not to play tricks on him out of sheer desperation. Like Ronen he is frozen, unlike Ronen he stays that way for much longer, until after his son has crossed the gap between them.
David looks at Ronen for a long time. In his eyes there is no anger, only love and relief and a tinge of regret. Because he knows that he has failed Ronen in the worst way imaginable, that he left him hurting and alone. David knows better than most what that is like, and he wouldn’t have blamed Ronen if he had never wanted to see him again, if he never wanted David to find him. After all David had done everything he’d promised himself he never would. Left his son out in the lurch the exact same way Charles had left him so many times. He was no better than his father really. Still, even though David knew he could never erase what had happened, he could give Ronen more than his father had ever given him. So he pulled Ronen in for hug as he finally spoke. “Yes, and I’m so sorry for leaving you.”
