Author's note: Wow, a sad story. By the guy that writes humor? Freaky! But this story came after listening to Savage Garden's 'Two Beds and a Coffee Machine' =) So here's my thanks to them and that sad piece. The spin of this is years after the digital world in a graveyard with a young man.
Pal walked through the trees in silence. The trees shaded the many headstones in the graveyard. It cast a pattern of gray on gray. He had walked this path many times, but today he misstepped more often then usual.
He was afraid. Afraid that his grandmother was right. That he was there. Hours before he had stopped in to say hello to her. She told him that, that man came by. He was asking what happened to.... Pal couldn't think of it now. But she said he would be here. Of all days! Why now, why here, why did this man come here?
Pal looked up as the trees parted and revealed the land going upwards to the highest spot in the graveyard. It was a bare hill with only one tree at the very top. Even now he could see it swaying.....
There! Standing up at the top was a short man. He was looking down at a headstone. Pal gulped and he knew, he knew who this man was.
The rest of the climb up was careful and slow. So the man would never hear. Pal snuck up behind him. He watched him. He was short, his curly orange hair was starting to fall out at the top. Pal could hear his heart racing. He looked up at the same orange hair falling around his eyes.
Suddenly the man turned and... and Pal was staring into two dark orbs of the man's eyes. This was... his father.
"Who are you?" his voice was so familiar to him. It was like his sister's voice.
"I... I know that women there," Pal said, pointing to the grave his father was standing by.
"Then.. are you?"
"Pal. My sister, Tena, will be here soon," Pal said coldly.
"Pal... little.. Pal?" the orange haired man started to step foreward. Pal raised his hands up to stop him.
"No. You, sir, are a stranger to me."
"But, Pal, I'm your.."
"Father? I know. But the only reason you're my father is purely biological," Pal's face was stone cold and emotionless.
The man looked down, "I should have expected this. I guess I dissevered this greeting."
"You guess?!" Pal's voice was starting to raise up, "You have been the only reason she...," he was choking up as he looked down at the grave, "Momma never smiled because of you. When we left she never rested. Not until death," this last part he spoke softly as tears started to form."
"Look, son, I'm..."
"Never call me that!" Pal stepped foreward and looking down at his father, "You hit her."
"I was drunk."
"You hit her!" Pal felt hot tears on his face as he stared at his father, "You hit her, you made our lives horrible!"
"I'm..." by now his father could barely speak from guilt, "I'm sorry."
"Sorry?! I wasn't even five when we left, Tena couldn't even walk. Momma was scared of you. I lived out of hotels for two years because she was scared if we settled down you'd find us. She wasn't happy until she died." Pal was now into this pattern of yelling at him and then cry through his words.
"What did she die of?"
"Heart attack. She started smoking, said it calmed her down, but nothing every made her calm," Pal enjoyed seeing the guilt on his father's face. Now you know, daddy dear, now you know, but Pal also felt a different emotion. Was he sorry that he was hurting this man? He had lived with hatred for his father for 17 years and now... and now all he had was an empty spot in his heart.
"How is your sister?"
"She's not like me. She was too young to really know you or what you did," Pal remembered how innocent she was about all this, "She was there at Momma's bed last year when she died," Pal thought of when he walked into the hospital to see his dear sweet sister crying over the body of his mother. He couldn't take this man any longer. He turned to leave.
"Wait! Pal, I can never undo what I did, but can I try to make amens?"
Pal stopped. His back was to turned to his father and he was glad. His face was filled with surprise. He turned back to see the look of hope, "I.. I don't know. I don't know if I want to hit you. Or if I want to just sit and cry, or whether to run to you and hug you and hope.. hope I can forgive you."
Slowly this man hidden from his life for so many years walked to him and hug him, "Please, Pal, don't hate me, I'm not like I was."
"D..." Pal choked on these words, "Dad."
The two men slowly left the graveyard. Leaving two roses under the white stone. Over them was the words 'Mimi Tachikawa Izumi, May she rest with the peace never offered to her in life.'
Wow. I can say no words to make a perfect ending for this. So your simple review is all I ask for.
Pal walked through the trees in silence. The trees shaded the many headstones in the graveyard. It cast a pattern of gray on gray. He had walked this path many times, but today he misstepped more often then usual.
He was afraid. Afraid that his grandmother was right. That he was there. Hours before he had stopped in to say hello to her. She told him that, that man came by. He was asking what happened to.... Pal couldn't think of it now. But she said he would be here. Of all days! Why now, why here, why did this man come here?
Pal looked up as the trees parted and revealed the land going upwards to the highest spot in the graveyard. It was a bare hill with only one tree at the very top. Even now he could see it swaying.....
There! Standing up at the top was a short man. He was looking down at a headstone. Pal gulped and he knew, he knew who this man was.
The rest of the climb up was careful and slow. So the man would never hear. Pal snuck up behind him. He watched him. He was short, his curly orange hair was starting to fall out at the top. Pal could hear his heart racing. He looked up at the same orange hair falling around his eyes.
Suddenly the man turned and... and Pal was staring into two dark orbs of the man's eyes. This was... his father.
"Who are you?" his voice was so familiar to him. It was like his sister's voice.
"I... I know that women there," Pal said, pointing to the grave his father was standing by.
"Then.. are you?"
"Pal. My sister, Tena, will be here soon," Pal said coldly.
"Pal... little.. Pal?" the orange haired man started to step foreward. Pal raised his hands up to stop him.
"No. You, sir, are a stranger to me."
"But, Pal, I'm your.."
"Father? I know. But the only reason you're my father is purely biological," Pal's face was stone cold and emotionless.
The man looked down, "I should have expected this. I guess I dissevered this greeting."
"You guess?!" Pal's voice was starting to raise up, "You have been the only reason she...," he was choking up as he looked down at the grave, "Momma never smiled because of you. When we left she never rested. Not until death," this last part he spoke softly as tears started to form."
"Look, son, I'm..."
"Never call me that!" Pal stepped foreward and looking down at his father, "You hit her."
"I was drunk."
"You hit her!" Pal felt hot tears on his face as he stared at his father, "You hit her, you made our lives horrible!"
"I'm..." by now his father could barely speak from guilt, "I'm sorry."
"Sorry?! I wasn't even five when we left, Tena couldn't even walk. Momma was scared of you. I lived out of hotels for two years because she was scared if we settled down you'd find us. She wasn't happy until she died." Pal was now into this pattern of yelling at him and then cry through his words.
"What did she die of?"
"Heart attack. She started smoking, said it calmed her down, but nothing every made her calm," Pal enjoyed seeing the guilt on his father's face. Now you know, daddy dear, now you know, but Pal also felt a different emotion. Was he sorry that he was hurting this man? He had lived with hatred for his father for 17 years and now... and now all he had was an empty spot in his heart.
"How is your sister?"
"She's not like me. She was too young to really know you or what you did," Pal remembered how innocent she was about all this, "She was there at Momma's bed last year when she died," Pal thought of when he walked into the hospital to see his dear sweet sister crying over the body of his mother. He couldn't take this man any longer. He turned to leave.
"Wait! Pal, I can never undo what I did, but can I try to make amens?"
Pal stopped. His back was to turned to his father and he was glad. His face was filled with surprise. He turned back to see the look of hope, "I.. I don't know. I don't know if I want to hit you. Or if I want to just sit and cry, or whether to run to you and hug you and hope.. hope I can forgive you."
Slowly this man hidden from his life for so many years walked to him and hug him, "Please, Pal, don't hate me, I'm not like I was."
"D..." Pal choked on these words, "Dad."
The two men slowly left the graveyard. Leaving two roses under the white stone. Over them was the words 'Mimi Tachikawa Izumi, May she rest with the peace never offered to her in life.'
Wow. I can say no words to make a perfect ending for this. So your simple review is all I ask for.