For the 101 Prompts challenge.
Dedicated to Beth (POTR) who is amazingly awesome and when i thought i couldn't write this anymore, she inspired me! :D This was your surprise! :D
Heart you, Beth :) Voldikki loves you.
I hope you like this. It's kinda my first try at Naitlyn :D
Fellow humans, please review and tell me what you thought of it! :D
98. Days
Day One: Saturday
He comes back from the funeral and he's completely opposite of what he used to be seen like. His eyes are swollen red, his suit looks crinkled and dirty, and you could swear that you've never seen Nate Gray this miserable before.
His steps stagger and his voice is hoarse, and he silently wonders what his five year old Samantha is doing, but when he checks her room, she's quietly in bed, snoring ever so softly. It was one of those things she picked from Caitlyn. The walls around her cozy, princess-like bed are pink, and he recalls when he and his wife went looking for paints and he remembers their argument regarding shades of blue or pink. After all, it was not his fault for not wanting his daughter to be a girly girl. But Caitlyn won with her pink (because he had to give in after she didn't talk to him for two hours)
Samantha stirs a little, and instantly he is broken out of thoughts. He takes one last look at her; she's hugging her teddy (the one that Caitlyn got for her) like she'll never let him go. Like she'll never let her mother go.
And he silently breaks when he realizes that even his daughter's grip wasn't strong enough to make Caitlyn stay.
--
Day Two: Sunday
He wakes up late, too late, as compared to what time he usually does, and he's still in his sleep when he whispers 'Good Morning, Katie,' and he can swear he hears her reply and feels a kiss on his cheek. But when reality sinks in, his eyes shoot open, and he thinks that maybe, just maybe, it was all a dream. So he looks around, and he notices the empty side of the bed, and his daughter's hand in his. He almost gets shocked, but then he notices her sitting on his stomach, playing with the buttons of his shirt, and he realizes that she was the one who wished him a good morning, and not his wife.
"Good Morning, Daddy," she says, her voice quite low, afraid that maybe he's still sleepy.
"Morning, sunshine," he replies, as he sits up.
"You slept way too late today. Too tired from yesterday?" He nods.
"What did you do all morning?" He arms on either side of her face, playing with her crazy curly hair. (They look exactly like Caitlyn's)
"I tried to comb my hair," she emphasizes at tried, "and I broke the comb."
He looks at her, and then notices the half-dead comb in her hand, and her red eyes. She almost looks like she was crying.
"You cried because a comb?" he asks, disbelief in his voice.
"I guess it sounds silly when you say it like that. I just thought you'd be mad." She replies, her eyes innocently looking at her, with a smile silently tugging at her face.
"I wouldn't be mad at my angel for anything." He says, and he picks her up and spins her in circles, and he tries not to notice that her carefree laugh sounds just like her mother's.
--
Day Three: Monday
She finally realizes her mother's absence. He comes back from work; tired and exhausted, and his daughter opens the door for him, and he sees the little stool that she uses to help her reach the door knob.
"How are you, Sam?" he asks, as he hugs her.
"I'm okay," she pauses, before continuing, "daddy, where's Mama?" and instantly he stops. He didn't expect her to ask him (not now anyway) and he suddenly goes into panic mode. He knows he can't just say that Caitlyn got in an accident and died; (notsosoon) so he just comes up with the best lie he can think of.
"Mama's staying at Granny's for a couple of days," he says, and he instantly thinks why he didn't say any more days than that; it would've given him more time to think.
"Oh, okay." He can't help but notice how her face droops, and he instantly feels like he caused this mood of hers (which he did) so he says something to brighten her mood.
"How about," he pretends to think, and she buys his act, he was always too good at acting. "How about we go get some ice-cream?" he finishes.
And just like he'd imagined, she runs to him and hugs him as tightly as her five-year old hands allow her to, as she chants YesYesYes. So, he lifts her up and carries her to the car, and suddenly it seems like she's forgotten about her mother, that her childlike happiness has suddenly left no signs of sadness like there was nearly five minutes ago. He wonders if making her get over reality will be harder, and if an ice-cream will cheer her up then. He knows the answer is a flat out No.
And Nate sighs.
--
Day four : Tuesday
He takes an off from work.
He knows it's not required, but Sam's got her winter break and he knows she'll probably end up being bored at home, so he stays anyway. She's delighted, so in ten minutes, she's got all the games that she owns scattered on the carpet in the hall. From Monopoly to Ludo, they spend the entire morning playing games until both are absolutely sure that they wont play them again for a whole week. (But they'll forget tomorrow)
In the evening, he takes her to some fancy restaurant that he discovered with Caitlyn, and when he walks in, his eyes tear up and his heart is breaking all over again, but he smiles for his angel. They eat and he shows his little girl the washing room after they're done. When she walks out she's got water all over her, and she grins and tells him that she had to climb on the sink 'cause she couldn't reach it.
He pats her head as he leaves the restaurant, hand clutched tightly in hers.
--
Day five : Wednesday
He walks in on Sam with a phone on the kitchen counter.
She's quite furious; she's pressing the numbers with frustration, and it doesn't take a while for him to realize that this is the angriest he's ever seen her. She's clutching the phone so tight, her wrist is white. Her legs are kicking the air violently, and the chair's shaking, and just when it's about to fall, he catches it.
"Sam," he asks, voice soft, "what's wrong?"
"Daddy," she replies, "this phone is stupid."
"Why?" He's smiling and curious now.
"Because," she starts, "I've been trying to call Mommy all day, but this annoying phone keeps telling me it can't dial."
And almost instantly, the smile's gone, and his eyes teary. He doesn't know what he should say now, it's breaking him. So he just lets one tear fall from his eye and pulls her to him, and she's clueless, unaware of what's gotten into him, but she hugs him back. When he still doesn't stop crying, she pulls away and helps him sit down on a chair. She rubs his back continuously and gets him water, trying her best to calm him down.
And before she knows it, she's crying too.
--
Day six : Thursday
After a night of tossing and turning, he can't help but start thinking about Samantha and how Caitlyn's absence is affecting her. The entire night he's wondering ways to break down the truth to her. Unfortunately, he is unsuccessful.
When dawn breaks, he gets out of bed and makes his way to Sam's room. The pink walls are filled with photographs of them and Caitlyn, and he's wondering how it all ended up like this. On her study table, there is her drawing book, and it's open. He goes towards it, and looks at her latest artwork.
What he sees kills him.
She's drawn a family picture with Caitlyn, himself and her, and they're in a park, next to a tree. The sun's shining brightly, and he's playing with Sam, while Caitlyn's with the picnic basket. However, it's the little message that she's written at the end which hurts him most.
This is my family. I love them. My daddy is very nice and he plays games with me and gets me ice-cream, but yesterday, he was crying. My mother is with grandma, and I really miss her alot. Please, God, make my mother come back and make daddy smile.
Love, Sam x
And he realizes that the truth cannot wait any longer.
But he'll let the day pass.
--
Day seven : Friday
Once he gets back from work, they spend the day doing random things, and he tries his best to smile more and convince his daughter that he's fine. He tells her that he needs to give her some important news at night, and she nods eagerly and smiles wide at him, the gap of a missing tooth evident, and he smiles too.
At seven 'o' clock, he gets her outside, under the sky which hold bright stars and every ounce of his confidence. She's wearing a pretty pink dress, and with her is her blanket, (she never left the house without it) and she's elegantly skipping and giggling as she makes her way to him.
"Sam," he asks, trying to get the attention of the girl who's trying to dig her feet into the sand.
"Yeah," she answers.
"You see the stars?" he questions, as he points at them with his finger, his hand trembling.
"Yeah, they're bright." She responds with a smile.
"Well, they say, that when people are very special, they become a star." He states to her.
"Oh," she says, "that's pretty."
"Indeed, and honey, there's more," he pauses, "I lied."
She gasps, because in her little world, lying is a big sin. "About what, daddy?" she asks.
"About your mother. She's a star now."
She doesn't say a word; she doesnt understand. He tries again.
"Honey, mommy has become a star. You won't be able to see her, but she'll always watch over you."
She nods in understanding, her eyes watering, and slowly, the tears are falling down freely.
"Daddy," she asks, "are you telling me that I'll never see mommy again?"
Unable to speak, he nods, as he tries to calm her down.
The tears are still falling, but she's smiling.
"I'm gonna miss mommy," she says.
"Me too, angel." He replies.
And as he turns to leave, her grip on his hand makes him stay.
"Daddy, could we sleep here tonight? I want mommy to see me." She asks, her voice hopeful.
And as a tear escapes his eye, he nods.
--
So, how was it? :) Personally, i thought it fell apart at the end, but i'd love to know what you guys thought of it! :)
Review? Thank you.
Please don't favorite without a review! :D