Disclaimer: Nope. Not mine.
Chapter Summary: There have been many letters throughout the years. Episode-related for "Farewell Letter."
A/n: Thank you for reading! Please take a second to review. I'd love to hear what you think.
In an unrelated note, I think I'm going to do another request round during the March hiatus, so if you have a request for a fic, please let me know.
-Ryeloza
Coda: Season Seven
A story by Ryeloza
Fifteen: Letter
June 1, 2003
Dad,
How could you just leave like that? You probably think you're being some kind of hero or dashing or some other ridiculous idea, but you're not. You're the villain. The villain is the one who leaves. Because it wasn't just Mom you abandoned. You abandoned me too. You left without even giving me a hug; you left without even saying goodbye. And now you expect me to say I'd rather be with you than Mom?
Mom is the one who stayed, Dad. She's the real hero.
I hate you for what you did to our family. I hate you for not caring enough to stay and make it work. I hate you for thinking that a couple of phone calls make it all better.
I'm staying with Mom. And you can't make me change my mind.
Julie
February 11, 2005
Dear Mrs. McCluskey,
We are sorry we stole your flowerpot. It was wrong, and we won't ever do it again.
From,
Preston, Porter and Parker
September 30, 2009
Dear Mom,
First of all, it's ridiculous that you don't have a phone. I talked to Marco, and he said that he and Anita offered to put you on their plan and you refused. I don't understand that; it's not like you had any pride about taking free stuff before so why start acting like you do now? Do you really want to be one of those women who lies on the floor for days with a broken hip because you don't have a phone to call 911? Just think of how embarrassed you'll be if a hot paramedic finds you like that. Get a phone!
Second of all, I'm sorry I forgot to tell you about the baby. I guess it slipped my mind. I put a couple of pictures in with this letter so you can see her because it's absolutely unnecessary for you to come up here to help out. I promise I'll invite you to the baptism; you can see her then. She's the most beautiful baby in the world. Carlos and I are completely in love with her. He's calling her our little miracle, and for once he's right. After everything that happened with the surrogacy and the adoption, I really never thought I'd be a mother. It's so different this time, knowing that she is really truly ours and no one can sweep in and take her away. Sometimes I still have nightmares, though; it's hard not to worry that it's all too good to be true.
Yesterday Juanita smiled for the first time. Carlos was making these ridiculous faces at her and she just burst out in this beautiful grin. According to my friends, that's very advanced for a one-month-old. Carlos says that she's going to be a heartbreaker someday—he just knows she's gorgeous even if he can't see her. He's such a great dad; I'm just relieved that one of us seems to know what we're doing.
So get a phone and call me, and I will let you know when the baptism is. Father Crowley has never been so excited to see me in church; I think he's as happy about the baby as we are.
Love,
Gabrielle
December 13, 2015
Dear Julie,
If you want to drop out of medical school then drop out of medical school. If you don't want to be a doctor then it's better you quit now and find something you do love to do. Pursuing this just because it's something you wanted to do when you were thirteen is ridiculous if it's not your dream anymore. I don't care what you do, as long as you're happy.
Don't worry about paying back your tuition. I'm not so concerned about that. But do me a favor and keep this under wraps from your mom for awhile. She's got enough drama in her life right now, and you know that this is going to be dramatic for her even if it shouldn't be. We'll deal with that hurdle somewhere down the line.
I'm always proud of you, Jules. No matter what.
Love,
Dad
April 30, 2017
Dear Katherine,
How are you? Is Paris still everything you hoped it would be? Is Robin well? I certainly hope everything is as lovely as you described it a month ago, because I finally settled the affairs with your house. The tenant moves in tomorrow. I think you'd approve of him Katherine—recently divorced with no children at home. He enjoys gardening. Andrew says that he's gay, but I'm certainly not sure. He said that he was married to a woman for nearly twenty-five years. Of course, I never expected it from you either.
I do miss you very much. Orson left a few weeks ago. Irreconcilable differences is what he's citing for the reason of our divorce. Truthfully I believe he's just disappointed in me, and that certainly isn't a reason to get divorced. If I'd filed for divorce every time I was disappointed…
I'm not going to lie, Katherine; especially not to you. I'm heartbroken. And relieved that I wasn't the one who left. And lonely. And so tired of having to blame myself for this. Am I truly the only one at fault because he left over a mistake I made over a decade ago? In some ways I feel like Orson was just waiting for a good excuse, and I hate him for that. Then I remember the way he used to look at me, back when we were so solid and whole, and I break down all over again. This divorce is eating away at me, and I desperately wish I had you here to talk to.
Sometimes I wish I could be as courageous as you. I think that maybe I could just pack up my life and run away from everything. But everything I hold dear in the world is right here, alongside all the bad memories and the pain, and if I left it, I think that I might disappear. You ran away with someone you care about, but I would be running away to nothing.
I can't just start over from scratch. I've never been the type of person who could.
I do hope you're doing well. Please call or write soon. You're in my prayers.
Love,
Bree
November 6, 2017
Dear Grandpa,
Thank you for the birthday present. Legos are really cool. I really like building things. I decided when I grow up I'm going to be an architect and make build buildings like the ones they have in New York City. My parents took me there last Christmas. We went to the top of the Empire State Building. It was awesome.
Danielle told me that you and Grandma got a divorce which means that you don't live together anymore. That's why I didn't get to see you when we went to visit Grandma last month. Does that mean I'll never get to see you again? Danielle said that you're not my real grandpa and that means you don't have to see me anymore, but Leo isn't my real dad either and I see him every day. Danielle said that's different, but I don't know why. So will you still let me visit you sometimes? I figured if you say yes then it's okay even if you and Grandma aren't married anymore.
You can write me a letter or call me on the telephone. Uncle Andrew got me a cell phone for my birthday, but Danielle says I'm too young to keep it so you'll have to call the house. Danielle said it was okay if you want to.
Love,
Benjamin
December 12, 2017
Dear Grace,
There are so many things that I want to tell you, and it breaks my heart every day to realize that I'll never get to say any of them to you. Your whole life people are going to tell you how beautiful and funny and thoughtful you are (and they should), but the first person you should hear that from is your mother. My mother never really said any of that to me, and I always thought I'd never be like her. Yet here I am, unable to even talk to you, my baby. It isn't fair to either of us.
I want so many things for you. I want you to be happy and popular. I want you to stay sweet and innocent. I don't want the world to tear you down so that you have to rebuild from nothing. I want your life to be free of worry and pain. I want you to be healthy. I want you to grow up and be the most dazzling woman. I wish all of this for you every single day. I'll keep wishing it for you until the day I die.
Some part of me hopes that someday you'll discover out the truth and come find me. That we can have a real relationship, not built in lies, but in the truth: that you are my daughter and you mean the world to me. If I could see you even one last time, give you one last hug, maybe my heart could heal. But until then I can only wish that you know that your mother thinks of you and loves you every day.
All of My Love,
Mom
March 5, 2018
Dear Mrs. McCluskey,
Thank you for letting us stay with you and for only charging us the cost of the damages we incurred. We really wanted to apologize again for throwing a party and trashing your house. It wasn't fair for us to take advantage of a nice old lady like you when you've always been so cool—especially when you caught us drinking wine coolers and smoking cigars that one time and didn't tell our parents. That was pretty awesome of you.
We moved out for real this time, and it's really a lot better than we thought it would be. Mom even showed us how to make omelets before we left, so we thought that maybe you and Roy might want to come over for breakfast sometime. Consider it a thank you and an apology all rolled into one.
Your Ex-tenants,
Porter and Preston