The disappearing man.
The disappearing man comes and goes, but never stays for long. The little girl gets a thrill of excitement as the disappearing man enters the room. He stays for a bit, just to chat, just enough to gain your trust, build promises, then break them. One by one.
The little girl doesn't understand. If the man loved her why would he leave her? The little girl asked and he says 'I'm not going to leave you again.' The little girl smiles, the man would not be leaving. He eyes bright with joy any time he enters the room. But when it was time for the Man to leave the girl didn't want to let him out of her sight, in fear that he would not come back this time. The man told her that he would see her tomorrow. The girl nodded trusting him, and his word.
The next day the little girl did not see the man. She spent her day, nose pushed up against the glass of her house window... waiting. He didn't show up.
"Why didn't you come?" the little girl said tearfully on the phone.
The disappearing man replied. "Something came up." The little girl nodded as if he could see her.
Days went by, weeks, months. The man had not called. The little girl did not let this get her down. One day the disappearing man called, it had been a year. Though out the seasons she watched the cold ice of winter slip away, watched it rain. In spring , the flowers start to bloom. The summers hotness brood on her back. The pretty colors of fall, as the leaves fell to the ground. Then back to winter, the nip of the wind as is put a sharp kiss on her cheek. It was then the disappearing man called again.
More phone calls came in, just calls. The little Cried her self to sleep, wanting to see him so badly. Then the man wanted to take her out to dinner. At the end of the phone call the man said, 'I love you.' she said, 'I love you, too.' the thing was though, she wasn't sure any more.
The man came to pick her up. They had a nice dinner. But it was awkward, filled with long silences that seemed to stretch on forever. The girl looked down at her food or down at her clasped hands when she wasn't eating. To afraid to look up into his eyes. Afraid of trusting him once again.
The man drove her home and as she was getting out of the car that smelled of him, he said, "I love you, Rose."
"I love you too, Daddy." Then she said slowly, " Goodbye, Daddy" Knowing that it might be true.
The little girl jumped out of the car. She stood on the side walk at her house at waved to him. Before he drove off, he rolled down his window, "I call you tomorrow Rose." She watched as the car was to far out of sight to be seen. He was gone. The disappearing man was gone again. Vanished. But he would come back for awhile. Let the little girl love him in the way a daughter could ,then leave her empty handed. Once again.
"Goodbye,daddy" Rose whispered into the the the chilly night air, and walked into the warm toasty home.