Chapter 4

Ariel cracked open the box of Melody's favourite cereal, drizzled some milk over top of it, and pulled the fresh toast out of the toaster.

"Melody! Breakfast!" She called.

Melody came running down, and slid into her chair.

"Good morning, Mommy." She smiled.

Ariel smiled back as she bit a piece of her toast. "Did you sleep well, my love?"

Melody nodded. "B.E.N. was so nice and fun... is Daddy anything like that?"

Ariel froze mid-bite. It pained her whenever Melody asked about Jim. Now the pain was sharper, cause Melody had no idea the father she craved was right underneath her nose.

Ariel shook her head. "No. B.E.N. isn't like your father. For one thing, your father would never let what happened last night happen."

When Ariel had come home, to her horror, the kitchen was in shambles. Multiple cake spatters were flung everywhere, the microwave had something explode in it, and Melody and B.E.N. were sitting on the counter eating cake, right before Melody had to go to bed. While Ariel was miffed, B.E.N. quickly cleaned up the mess and sent Melody to bed.

"If your father saw you eating cake before bed, you would probably be in serious trouble." Ariel added.

"Is B.E.N. not going to sit for me anymore?" Melody asked, a look of worry in her eyes.

Ariel laughed. "no no, if I go out, B.E.N. will sit for you again; he just won't destroy the house this time."

"Can you tell me more about Daddy?" Melody asked.

Ariel looked up. "He was very brave, very handsome, and- like you- he had kind of a rebellious streak."

"Like eating cake before bed?" Melody asked.

"Maybe... Oh Mel, if only you two could officially meet..."

The two continued eating, when there was a knock on the door.

"I'll get it." Ariel said.

She got up from her chair and opened the door. "Jim?" She asked in surprise.

"Hi... am I too early?" He asked.

Ariel shook her head. "Melody's just finishing up breakfast. Come on in; have you eaten?"

Jim nodded, but barely. He was still so shocked from the reveal that he could barely choke down anything, and he definitely didn't tell his mom about the new addition to the family. As far as she thought, he was still a virgin, and the fact he was now a father, and had been since he was fifteen definitely would not have sat well with her.

"Look, Ariel..." Jim began.

Ariel turned.

"I know it was probably hard telling me about Melody..."

"As hard as it was for you to actually hear me out." She replied.

"Yeah... I deserved that..." Jim bitterly responded. "But... I spent most of my life without a father..."

"I remember."

"Well, I don't want Melody to have the same life I did. I want to be as invested in her life as possible. May I?"

Ariel nodded. "If you are sure..."

"Does she know I'm...?"

"No. I couldn't tell her, until I knew for sure you wanted to be in her life, anyway, come on, she's in the kitchen."

Ariel lead Jim down the hall into the kitchen where Jim saw Melody. Looking at her again, he did notice a very small resemblence to him.

"Melody." Ariel began.

Melody turned. "Oh..." She cried out. "You're the scary guy from the inn."

"Well, Melody... I have something important to tell you." Ariel continued.

Melody scurried over, looking at the man, questioningly.

"Melody... What's one thing you've really wanted more than anything?" Ariel asked.

"A seahorse?" Melody began.

Ariel shook her head. "The other thing."

"Oh! To meet Daddy!" Melody replied.

Ariel picked up her daughter and turned her to Jim.

"Surprise." He replied.

Melody stared, in surprise, eyes widening and jaw dropping.

"D... Daddy?" She asked in surprise.

"Yeah, Melody... I'm sorry I..."

"NO!" Melody screamed. "It can't be! Why now? Why did you come back now! WHY DID YOU WAIT FOR SO LONG?!"

With that, she wriggled free from her mother's grasp and tore out of the room.

"Melody..." Ariel began.

"Don't worry." Jim began. "I'll go."

"No, Jim... It's a bad idea..."

Jim smiled and pulled out a pink blob. "You don't think I would go meet my daughter and show up empty handed, did you?"