AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“So, thanks, I guess,” I said, as much to break the silence as anything else.
He nodded. I’d expect some spiel about how much I owed him, how benevolent he was to waste his time on his useless son. I got none of that.
“Annika is pregnant.”
I blinked, biting the inside of my cheek so I didn’t actually ask him if he was the one who needed a lesson in contraception and taking responsibility.
“She’s eight weeks.”
I mean, it meant nothing to me. I didn’t know anything about pregnancy except how to avoid it.
But I nodded. “You must be excited.”
He cleared his throat and seemed to rearranged to get less comfortable. “It occurs to me, Roman, that I’m being offered a rare second chance. Third, in my case.”
I nodded again, but had no idea what he was talking about.
“I… I wasn’t– haven’t been a good father to you, Roman…” he said, and I frowned.
“You think because your child bride is going to spawn that you…what? Get another chance with me?” I scoffed.
It was a testament to the fact he was trying that he didn’t berate me. “I know I don’t deserve one. You’re not obligated to give me one. I’m the parent. I was supposed to set an example. The example I set was…not the right one and for that I’m sorry.”
I didn’t think I’d ever heard him apologise before.
“I’m not just going to forgive you. It’s going to take a fucking lot before any of this bullshit is even dented.”
He nodded. “I understand. But I’m willing to do the work.”
“You say that now,” I muttered.
“I do. And I know only time will even go halfway to convincing you. But will you let me try, Roman?”
I sighed. “What do you expect from me?”
He shook his head. “Nothing.”
My eyebrow rose. “Nothing?”
“Well–”
“Here we go.”
“I wondered if you’d accompany Maddy to Sydney in the summer holidays?”
“You want us to visit the child bride to play happy families?”
“I want my son and granddaughter to get to know my wife better. She’s carrying your brother or sister. I would like there to be a chance for them to know their family, even if you won’t have a relationship with me.”
He just had to play the kid card.
Maddy would be over the moon. She loved kids and having an aunt or uncle who was younger than her? She’d fucking explode with excitement. And that poor baby. Stuck with Rocco and the child bride? I couldn’t in good conscience leave my sibling to that fate.
So, I nodded. “All right, Rocco. Mads and I will come and visit you and the… Annika.”
His face remained stony, but his eyes softened slightly. “Thank you.” Then he cleared his throat. “Well, I guess I should get going. My flight’s not until late, but I don’t want to hit traffic on the way back into Adelaide.”
I didn’t have anything more to say to him anyway. “Sure. Makes sense.”
We stood up and he reached out to me. When I didn’t take his hand – if that had even been the point – he patted my shoulder awkwardly and nodded. “Thank you, Roman. It was good to see you.”
In the interests on my new sibling’s sense of family, I didn’t remind him that he had the means and the money to see me whenever he wanted.
“And thank you for…today,” I said.
He cleared his throat. “No. Of course. My pleasure. Glad I could help.”
This wasn’t the Rocco I knew. He was careful, but wary. He might have actually been trying. As I watched him get into his car to head home, I wondered how long this act would keep up. Or, at the very least, how long until he went radio silent. I didn’t much care if we never spoke again, he’d managed to hold a conversation with me without once belittling me or berating me.
It wasn’t going to undo years of damage but, if that was the last we saw of each other, then I could walk into my court mandated therapy sessions with some sense of closure at least.
