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CHAPTER 3

Fred didn’t know how to respond. He had spent hours thinking about what he would say to his dad. But that was when he was a kid, looking for an escape from the harsh realities of the world.

Fred’s heart sank. He hadn’t heard his father’s voice since he was 3 years old. He didn’t even remember what it sounded like until a few moments ago. A sob tore out through his chest.

“Dad?” He said.

“Oh Fred I am so sorry,” he cried into the phone. “I am sorry I didn’t find you sooner… I am sorry I left you all these years ago. I – I am sorry, son.”

Both men were crying now. Fred had finally found his father and Louie had finally found his son.

Despite his reservations, he could feel his anger towards his father going away. He knew what he had done was wrong but he could not help it. He was a child all over again. His father was back now and everything seemed a little better now.

“Perhaps we could meet?” Louie asked quietly, afraid of the answer. “If only that’s okay with you… You don’t have to involve me in your life or anything like that… I just want to see you and talk.”

Fred sniffled but even that couldn’t hide the smile from his face. “I’d love to. I don’t want to tell anyone yet but I still haven’t reached home. I am five minutes away from the hospital. We can meet there now. If you haven’t gotten too far, that is.”

“I am on my way,” he replied.

Nodding to himself, he hung up the phone and made his way back to the hospital. He had been waiting for this moment since as long as he could remember. He wondered how it would all play out. Would he run towards him? Hug him as soon as he sees him? Would they both cry in each other’s embrace?

With these thoughts occupying his mind, he reached the hospital before he realized. He reached the reception and saw someone in a suit standing with his back towards him. He had an aura around him. One of importance and wealthiness. Taking a deep breath, he started walking towards him but stopped a few steps away.

“Father?” He said in a shaky voice.

The man turned around and his face broke into a grin. “Freddy?”

“That’s me,” he smiled back. But something about that smile was different. Out of all the things, he didn’t expect to feel angry. He thought he was over it but the moment he saw his father’s face, he felt furious. And hurt and betrayed. This was the man who had left him and his mother on their own. He had abandoned them and now he wanted to talk as if nothing had happened. That was unacceptable to Fred.

“You abandoned us,” he said, his anger evident on his face.

“Son, please,” Louie said, taken aback. “I can explain.”

“Can you?” He shouted.

“Please give me a chance. I’ll tell you everything.”

Before he could start explaining, Fred turned around and left. He didn’t know how to deal with this. His father had shown up out of nowhere magically and wanted to reunite with him. All the thoughts about his father coming back that had made him happy now only made him upset.

He left the hospital in a fury and started walking without any sense of direction.

“Fred, wait!”

He heard his father shout and turned around.

“What do you want?”

“A chance,” his father answered. “Please just let me explain myself.” He was out of breath at this point.

He nodded reluctantly.

“I've known your mother since middle school,” he started. “She was a quiet kid but everyone loved her. I was the exact opposite. I liked being the centre of attention. I was loud and often harsh with my beds but she saw me as more than a troubled kid. She understood me better than I ever understood myself. I had found my best friend and the love of my life in the same person. Everything was right. We had even managed to find a place to live together. But that is when she got pregnant with you.”

Fred was listening to each word carefully.

“I knew she was the one I wanted to marry and so we did. For the first couple of months, it was the most beautiful thing ever. But having a baby was more difficult than we could have expected. I had to work a lot to support all of us while she stayed home to take care of you. We started fighting more and more and distance grew. Until...” he sighed. “Until I couldn’t take it anymore.”

“Right,” he replied angrily. “So you left.”

“I was scared, Fred!” Louie cried. “Scared of losing my family, of becoming a bad father. I was not strong enough to support you and give you all the love and care you needed. And deserved. I was miserable. I – I was lost. I didn't know what to do. I am so sorry son.”

“Well, dad,” Fred said, stepping towards him. “That is the oldest excuse in the book! If you were so scared, you should have told mom. Told her that you are lost and you would have figured something out together. You didn’t have to abandon us! Do you have any idea how difficult it has been for us ever since you left? Everything mom had to do just to put food on the table.”

“I am sorry… Please give me a chance to make it up to you. Up to Andrea.”

“I don’t understand how you can come up to me and expect to make up for years of hardships you put us through!”

“Fred, please, give me -”

“NO.” Fred shouted. “I appreciate all that you have done for me and my mother but we don’t need you. We are fine on our own. I want you to go back to wherever you came from and stay away from us.”

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