“Is that my handsome father?”
Glancing over his shoulder, he cracked a slow smile. “My babygirl.”
My face lit up as I crossed the room to get to him. “Hey, Daddy.” I leaned down, kissing his cheek. “How you feeling?”
“Strong,” he said confidently. “Getting back to my old self slowly.”
“That’s what I like to hear. How was PT today?”
He shook his head. “They kicked my ass today, Butterfly.” He laughed. “But you know I’m built for it. And they ain’t gon’ do nothing to hurt ya old man. Especially when I have you and Fawn in my corner.”
“You betta know it. Speaking of yo’ boo, has she been here today?” I took off my coat to get comfortable and pulled a chair over to sit with him.
“Not yet. She called. And who said that she was my boo?”
“Oh, Daddy, please. Y’all act like two people in love whenever y’all around each other. Be smiling so hard I can see y’all back teeth.”
He grinned. “You see ya daddy still got it.”
“You know I ain’t mad atcha, Poppa D.” I held out my fist to dap his.
We talked for hours during my visit. Me catching him up on how KJ was doing, my job as the finest nanny that a nigga ever did see, and I even let it slip that I had a date later on with Enzo. Though I had no intention on telling him that, his reaction was cool. It seemed like he already knew the nature of my relationship with Enzo but was waiting on me to bring it up. Still, he didn’t pry. And I appreciated it, seeing as Enzo and I were in the beginning stages of dating.
“Thryi.”
“Wassup, Daddy?” I looked over at him.
“Thank you,” he said, his voice steady and strong. “Thank you for not leaving me.”
Tears welled up in my eyes. “You don’t have to thank me, Daddy.” My voice cracked. “You can always count on me to be here.”
“I know,” he replied. “I still wanna say thank you. There were days when I wanted to push you away because I felt like a burden.” His head dropped, and I got up from my chair and threw my arms around his neck. “I’m gon’ get back to the father you know and love.”
“You never left,” I assured him. Tears blurred my vision as I sniffed. “Just a minor setback. You’re still my hero. Still the strongest man I know. I love you so much, Daddy.”
“I love you too, Butterfly. My biggest blessing and best gift.”
For a moment, I was thirteen years old again, and we were sitting in the living room of our apartment, both lost in our thoughts.
My mother had just left the house, and we both knew she wasn’t coming back. The house didn’t feel stifled with anger my mother could no longer put words to. I found peace in the moment, and by the way he sat back on the couch, so did he. Only I didn’t know how to convey it. So, while I was fine on theinside, my posture must’ve told a different story because he got up and sat next to me.
“You know I don’t know nothing ‘bout being a single father, but I know everything about beingyourfather. We in this together, Thyri. You’re my biggest blessing and my greatest gift. I got you.”
That was all the reassurance I needed.
“Oh, I’m sorry. Am I interrupting?”
We both looked up to find Fawn backing out of the room.
“No. You’re good,” I said, wiping at my eyes.
“You sure? I can come back if y’all need a minute. I should’ve knocked.”
“It’s cool, baby,” my dad said, winking at me.
I could see Fawn blushing from across the room. “Y’all are too cute. Come on in.” I waved her inside.
She had her purse on her arm and an insulated bag in her hand. “I won’t stay long now that I see you’re here.” She kissed my cheek. “I just wanted to make sure he had something to eat. I made that lasagna we talked about yesterday.” She set the bag down and leaned over to hug my father.
