Finding Roots // Self para (sort of...)
Zig felt extremely nervous as he walked down the wall to his father's hospital room. His mother was next to him, but he barely noticed her. Zig had always imagined what he would say to his father if he'd ever met him, but he never realized that it would ever actually happen. Nor did he ever think that he would be meeting his father when he was on his death bed. He had so many questions, and it killed him that he might never get the answers.
Finally when they reached the room, his mom gave his hand a quick squeeze before they walked inside. As Zig entered the room, he saw a man lying on a bed. Anytime he'd thought about his father, he'd never imagined him like this. His mother had never been very forthcoming with information of his father, but this was not at all what he had expected. He'd expected some strong scary looking man, since it had always seemed to Zig that his mother was terrified of his father.
Zig walked over and sat down next to bed. "Dad?" he asked.
The man nodded. "You look like your mother."
"I know." Zig wasn't sure why, but the words seemed slightly different from his father. He'd heard that he looked like his mother a million times, but something was different now.
Zig's father smiled at him. "So tell me about yourself boy."
"Well I'm your son, I'm sixteen, I grew up in Canada." Zig replied, not sure what his father wanted.
"I mean the things that I don't know. Your mother was here the other day and told me the basics, now I want to know the little things about my boy."
Zig shot his mother a sideways glance, wondering when she'd had time to come here, and how he hadn't noticed. "I used to skateboard a lot, but recently I haven't had time. I hate math with a passion. I write music and my dream is to be a musician, and if that doesn't work out, I don't know what I want to do."
Zig's father let out a soft laugh. "I never knew what I wanted either."
Zig was quacking his brain, trying to think of anything at all to say. There were so many things he wanted to tell his father, he almost felt like he wanted to tell him everything. His father who had missed his whole life was now in front of him, and Zig had nothing to say. "Uh, I recently got a puppy, and my girlfriend is now puppy sitting him this week, because my roommates recently had twins." This hadn't been the type of thing that he'd meant to bring up, but he knew it was better than nothing.
"Tell me about this girlfriend of your's."
"Well, your name is Maya. We haven't really been dating all that long, but she was my best friend long before she was my girlfriend. She's been there for me through a lot, and I can't picture my life without her. She's a fellow musician, she's the sweetest person I've met. She's beautiful, she's wonderful. She makes me glad to be alive." Zig replied, knowing he could talk about Maya for hours.
"Sounds a little like your mother."
Zig wasn't sure why, but something about his father's statement had hit a nerve. "If my mother was so great, why'd you let her leave? Why'd you never try to contact her until now? Why'd you let me grow up without a father?" Zig's voice was growing louder with each word. "Explain that much to me, I think deserve it."
Zig let out an angry huff. "What do you mean you had to? Nobody forced you to."
"Zigmund." Zig's mother whispered.
"No mom, I want the answer. After all of this time, and everything I have been through, I want to know." He yelled, turning his attention back to his father.
Zig watched as his father opened and closed his mouth a few time, before finally speaking. "Because in order to keep you safe, I had to stay away."
"What do you mean?" Zig asked, still angry. His father's answer reminded him way too much of the situation he'd been in a few months ago.
"I suppose you've heard of the Russian mafia have you?"
Zig nodded. "But what does that have to do with anything?"
"When I was just a little older than you, I made all the wrong choices. Then I met your mother, and I realized I needed out. I left, and I thought it was for good. But several months later, I was informed that if I didn't come back, they'd kill anyone I cared about. So I bought your mom a ticket to Canada, and I told her to run. I told her to get away, and never look back."
As Zig's father spoke, Zig could feel tears forming in his eyes. "But why didn't you come for us? It's been years."
"Until recently son, I didn't know about you, and well, I always thought your mother was better off."
Zig could feel all of the pieces falling into place, and all of his questions were becoming clear. He couldn't help but let the tears roll down his face now. "I am sorry for assuming you never cared."
"It is alright Zigmund. Just know that I loved you from the moment I knew you existed,"
Zig got up from his chair, and wrapped his arms around his father's fragile body. He couldn't help but smile as his father returned the hug. Zig could feel himself letting go of sixteen years of anger. All of these years he'd been angry with his father, but all of this time his father had been trying to do the right thing. Zig knew exactly what that felt like, and Zig knew that as long as he lived, he would never think another angry thought about his father.
origamiaround
ellievsbear
annaxmalina
romaincrisis
vaporwave
kaledo-art
tangentwithtanner
areudirty
