Disclaimer: Final Fantasy X belongs to Square Enix.

The Love

Jecht knew he was a failure as a father long before he was pulled into Spira. He knew that. But he always wrote it off as something that would eventually fix itself, or blamed it on his poor communication skills. Besides, there was Blitzball to be played and attention to be won. There would be plenty of time for family bonding once he retired.

"One day, I'll make it up to the kid. One day, I'll learn."

Tidus grew up wishing he hated his father. Tidus hated his father's arrogance and brashness. He hated the drunken rages and the way Jecht dominated Blitzball. But Tidus didn't hate his father; he loved him. Only, Tidus could never say that out loud, instead he chose to hide behind fake hate. He figured there would be plenty of time to be truthful once he grew up.

"One day, I'll tell him off. One day, I'll show him."

For years the father wished he could show his love and the son wished he didn't love the older man. The only thing they shared was the promise of time; there would be time to fix these things, there would always be time.

Then, fate intervened and disrupted their plans. There would be no time for anything.

Jecht was gone, spirited away to Spira.

Tidus was left in Zanarkand with a broken heart he didn't understand.

The Blitzball stadium was covered in bright lights, as always. Roaring cheers echoed as fans clapped and yelled for their favorite team. A few watchers had their attention diverted; they stared wide-eyed at the man walking toward the Abe's locker room—it could only be Jecht. Others called out to the famous blitzer, asking him why he wasn't in the game showing up the rookies.

Jecht replied with a wave of his hand and a few cocky comments, just to satisfy the demands. And even though he refused to sigh autographs, the fans went away with smiles on their faces; it wasn't everyday they met the best athlete in Zanarkand.

Somewhat reluctantly, Jecht continued his trek to the locker room. He wasn't used to passing up attention from fans. Long ago, he perfected autographs and the confidence that pleased the fans. It had become second nature. But, these days the glory and attention didn't feed his ego like it used too.

Instead of dwelling on the changes in his feelings, Jecht shook his head and leaned against the door to the locker room. He crossed his arms over his chest and tried his best to appear nonchalant.

The game would be over in just a few minutes.

The Zanarkand Abes hollered cheers and clapped each other on the back. Victory was theirs. For the fifth year running, they were the city champions. But when they pranced down the hall to the locker room, another exciting surprise awaited them.

Most of the young men stopped in their tracks, realizing their idol was perched against the wall of their locker room. One teammate let out a yell, unable to contain his excitement. Smiles spread quickly as Jecht nodded to the young men and congratulated them on the win. But when Jecht mentioned he needed to have a word with their captain, Tidus, the players quickly shuffled into the room. Soft whispers spread through a group of older players and a few looked back at their blonde teammate.

But Tidus just shrugged, waving them inside with a quick grin. As soon as the door shut, the smile faded and was replaced with a confused glance.

"What are you doing here?"

"Can't a man congratulate his son on a victory?"

Tidus snorted, "You never go to any games except your own."

Brushing off the fact, Jecht made a request, "Follow me." As he passed Tidus and headed back toward the stadium, Jecht heard a sigh and the movement of feet. Even after all this time, Tidus still listened to his father.

The pair walked back into the stadium, now empty of fans. Tidus followed his father up three flights of stairs and sat one seat apart from the older blitzer when Jecht finally settled down. Without a word, Jecht lifted his feet to rest on the seat in front of him as he looked over the water pool. Tidus copied the relaxed gesture but continued wondering what his father was doing.

"In the first half," Jecht began abruptly and pointed to the nearest goal, "your last shot was weak. You rushed the positioning of your hips."

"There was only three seconds left. I didn't have time."

"There's always time," Jecht contradicted, shooting his son an insistent glare.

The urgency in his father's tone caught Tidus' attention. What did his old man really want? Surely, Jecht could have criticized his playing in the locker room. Why did he lead the young blitzer back to the stadium?

"What do you want, old man?"

Shocked by the old nickname, Jecht blinked slowly and then grinned. Before Tidus could ask what was so amusing, laughter burst from the older man. Jecht's bellowing laugh echoed across the empty stadium causing Tidus to flinch and stare incredulously at his father.

After a few moments, the laughter was reduced to chuckles and then finally to a smirk. Jecht focused on the water pool as he said, "Sorry, I just realized I brought you here to say something important and all I've done is fallen back into my old habits."

Confused, Tidus asked hesitantly, "Well, what do you have to say?"

With a strained grin, Jecht said, "You see, that's the problem. I want to say it, but I can't."

"I'm all ears, say it," the son insisted.

Jecht rubbed a hand over his mouth, staring at his son beneath shaggy bangs. No words were said. Eventually, Tidus raised an eyebrow, completely confused. But Jecht just kept staring, trying to form words.

After a long time, Jecht closed his eyes and let out a long sigh. "Stand up."

Quickly, the teen stood and watched his father raise from his seat. Without warning, Jecht embraced Tidus in a hug. Shocked, Tidus couldn't return the gesture and only thought about how tight his father's grip was. And just as fast as it had happened, it was over and Jecht was standing with his back facing Tidus.

"There, I said it."

"Huh?"

The older blitzer turned around and waved between the two of them. "I said what I had to say!"

"You hugged me."

"Yeah, well, yeah." Embarrassed, Jecht exclaimed, "You can go back to your team now!" He attempted to shove his son out of the row of seats, but Tidus stood firm, his previously confused look replaced with a contemplative glance. Jecht let out a flustered sigh, "What do you want?"

Shaking his head slowly, Tidus answered, "Nothing." And taking a few steps, Tidus returned the previous embrace by giving another. "Thanks, Dad."

Surprised, Jecht hesitantly wrapped his arms around his son, ignoring the few tears that escaped from his eyes.

The father and son finally had all the time they needed.

First off, I apologize for the extremely late update. Without going into details, let's just say I've been swamped.

One more chapter to go!

Thank you for reading. Reviews are greatly appreciated!-randomcat23