"little by little she's

learning to love her own self ,

and it might be slow, but she's certain

in letting go of all the things

that tell her she shouldn't."

Tick-tock. Tick-tock.

The old grandfather clock in the busy dining kept announcing her absence from time to time, and he went for the empty glass for the nth time, oblivious of his increasing anxiety.

"Excuse me..." And then he raised the glass that he held by his handkerchief to the only waiter available, indicating that he wanted him to fill it up.

"Sure. Um, are you ready to order now, sir?" The waiter asked, as politely as possible.

A man sitting at the diner, literally using a sanitizer to clean his hands from time to time, was a source of entertainment for some.

And some were curious.

Someone important. With a Burberry suit, loaded with cash, practical eyes, screaming richness, sitting in an old, cheap diner that served breakfast to the working class men and women. Of course, people were eager to know what he was there for.

Arthur Lockwood sat there, glaring, at no one in particular, his phone placed in his ears, his lips moving, cancelling a meeting after the another.

It's been an hour. She was still not here.

He knew he deserved it though.

His eyes went to the doorway once again, the urge of leaving the place being too strong.

He knew he could not leave. There was a reason why she choose this place. To make him feel suffocated. To make him feel trapped. To make him angry. To make him leave.

But he was determined. Determined to make it better.

He didn't want forgiveness. He wanted to apologise.

For everything.

***********************************************

On the other side of the road, a camera made a snapping sound, making Faye look up from her phone and smile.

Instead of walking faster, she opened her back camera and snapped some pictures of the man.

Paparazzi.

She waved at him with a laugh before making her way towards the old diner, where Mr. Arthur Lockwood was supposed to be waiting for her.

He has probably left.

Its fine. Even if she doesn't find him there, she will just have breakfast and leave. She had things to do anyway.

As she walked, she thought about what River had said before she left the house.

"Babe, you're not going there to forgive him, you're going there to let go of the past. You're going so that you could find the answers to the questions that have constantly bugged you since your childhood. You're going for your own self. You don't owe him anything. Remember that, always."

Yes. Yes, she didn't owe him shit.

And a big part of her thought that he wouldn't even show up. And even if he did, he would probably run away after realizing where she had set up the meeting.

But a small part of her wanted to see him. Waiting. Despite being in an atmosphere that the millionaire hated.

Maybe she was asking for too much, but when he had called, exactly a month ago, she could not help but sense the sincerity in his voice. She had denied at first of course, she did not want to linger anywhere near him, but when River and her mother showed her the better side of the situation, she had agreed. But she extended the meeting as much as she can. Saying she had somewhere to go, meetings to attend. But when he called her five days ago, begging her to sat a date, she gave in.

And there she was. Walking towards the place that reminded her of the 80s, the place where 'Guns and Roses' bursted from the speakers. She choose the place because it gave her a homely feeling, because it made her feel comfortable. But she choose to go there an hour later so that her father could have every reason to leave and reconsider everything.

But when she reached the place, she saw him, sitting there, in a suit that made him look like a big deal.

And she noticed something more than just the businessman. She noticed the grey hair, the troubled eyes, she noticed a human.

The antique doorbell in the oak door jingled, grabbing Arthur's attention. And he saw his daughter standing there, her eyes meeting his.

He stood up from his table as soon as he spotted her and gave her a small smile, making Faye nod in return.

"Faye. Thank you for coming." He said as soon as she took a place opposite to him.

"Do you want to have something? I can call the waiter, heard that breakfast is nice here." At that, Faye let out a small laugh.

"You don't even know what's served here. You probably have not even touched the menu." She said, rolling her eyes.

"I haven't. But the last four people that have walked into this place ordered morning breakfast, scrambled eggs and bacon. I don't know the last time I had that." He said, chuckling a little.

"But it's really good. You know what? You should try it. I didn't have breakfast as well, why don't you join me?...Oh wait, um... never mind, your diet will get messed up." She shook her head before grabbing an empty glass and pouring water from the bottle, gulping it in one go.

"No, no. Its okay. I missed breakfast as well. Umm, why don't you order for both of us?"

And she nodded with a small smile before calling the waiter, who perfectly recognized her and gave her a highfive before jotting down their orders and leaving them alone.

"So, um, I heard that you're starting university from tomorrow."

And suddenly, everything felt a little too real.

"Yeah, I start tomorrow." She nodded, her hands fidgeting on her lap.

"How's your mom?"

"Good. Great, actually. She's super busy with her upcoming collection and is loving every part of it." A small smile appeared on her face when she imagined her mother, pencils and markers sticking to her bun, her hands patiently working on the designs.

"She is so happy that she has you back." It came out of nowhere and Arthur even if he wanted to, couldn't hold his tongue.

"Ha?"

"I was on the phone with her after I called you and Faye, it was different. She, she talked differently. It felt like, she was a totally different person. She never seemed so happy, not after Sumner died. But now, now she is. She is so happy. And that's all because of you."

"I mean, you did kind of ruin it all up."

It was like watching two time bombs ticking, waiting for them to burst, to explode.

"I... I did." He muttered, almost inaudible, but she heard it all.

"Why?"

And for the next two minutes, the place was filled with unpleasant sounds of the coffee machine. And then some people started talking about the sudden climate changes. 'Lithium' started playing in the radio.

It was like a usual, busy day for the diner.

But Faye didn't want to hear those sounds.

She wanted to hear her father speak.

And he has been quiet for the last few minutes.

The waiter came and served them their plates of scrambled eggs and bacon, but neither of them took a bite.

"Why?" She whispered, once again, her eyes stinging.

"I did not love your mother. I got married to her for the industry. And... I... I cheated on her because... because, I... I don't know... it just happened. The day before the wedding, I felt like my whole world was falling apart, and your aunt was there, and she said something along the lines of how I will not able do anything of my choice anymore, that I am just a puppet and... and, it just happened. I didn't know your mother actually loved me... I did not know."

And she felt herself getting warmer and warmer with anger.

"So, so you fucked my aunt to taste freedom?! That's not how it works." Her hands were quivering, her eyes glaring at the man who sat there. Who did not dare to look at her.

"What about us? Why did you do that to us?"

"Because then your mother confessed that she loved me. And... and I started to feel guilty. She said that we could forget about it all and start a new family but then, then I cheated on her again, that was after Sumner was born. And then, I was engulfed by such guilt that I was not able to meet that kid's eyes. Nor you. And to escape from my conscience that always questioned me about things that I was never able to answer, I ran, I ran away. From you, your mother, Sumner."

And she remained calm, going through what she had just heard.

The nights Sumner would cry herself to sleep, unaware of Faye watching her. The birthdays that they would spend without cutting cakes. The ballet championships that they won but had no one but each other to celebrate with. The cold Christmas mornings that led her to believe Santa claus was not real a little too early. The winters without anyone by her side after Sumner left. Those blank spaces. Silent nights.

"You are..."

"An asshole." He completed it for her and she stared at him, unbelievably.

"And such a pathetic excuse for a human being."

"I know."

"You... you ruined everything for us. You made us feel like we were to blame for whatever happened. You made us hate ourselves father, hate ourselves. I would always think its me, that it was me who was not perfect enough. We worked so hard just so you could appreciate and love us, a little. With school, with work. I would study my ass off so that you guys could be proud of me but... but you would not even show up for parent- teacher conferences. It was all Sumner who would stand up and clap in those dance championships, who would drive me to art classes, who would take care of me. And then, suddenly, God took her away as well. And you guys weren't there, not even then... because you loved money so fucking much that family was a secondary factor..." Her throat felt dry.

Silence.

"I... I am sorry."

And for the first time, she dared to look at him, really look at him.

His eyes seemed tired, guilt pouring through them, and she felt him quivering.

He was sorry.

"You were a monster to us, father."

"I am sorry, Faye. I am so sorry. I am sorry that I never gave you a reason to call me dad, I am so sorry I was never there for you and Sumner, I am sorry I hurt you so much, I am so sorry that you felt the need to constantly prove yourself to me. Honey, you are perfect and an amazing daughter and I am sorry I was not there to tell you that."

And she breathed out.

"I am not asking you to forgive me Faye, I know I don't deserve that. But I want to make it up for you, through a thing or another. I want to be a part of your life, Faye. I want to earn your forgiveness. And I want to do every possible thing for it. Please let me do that."

"I..."

"I will make sure you don't regret it Faye. I have realized so many things this past month, and I want you to know that I am sorry, I really am."

"Okay... " She whispered, giving him a small smile.

"Um... can I take you to your first day of college, tomorrow?"

And she let him.

She let him do that.

And then they talked. They talked for hours after that, trying to erase the uncomfortable silence, the hesitant questions and replies. And Faye loved the fact that he was trying as much as he can.

"The breakfast was actually nice." He said, once they got out of the diner.

"I told you."

"I might actually consider coming here."

"Look at you? Changing your million dollar ways."

And they laughed at that.

Just as they were talking, a car parked itself in the lot and out came River Blake, a big smile on his sharp features. He waved at her, leaning on the car's hood.

"Looks like your ride is already here." Arthur nodded at River to which he received an enthusiastic nod back.

"He is." She smiled at him, a smile only reserved for him.

And Arthur stared. And even if he had never experienced love, he witnessed it. The love, the beauty.

"You, you love him, don't you?" And that made Faye look at him.

"I... I do."

"Does he makes you happy?"

"He makes me feel like I am the most precious thing in the world. He makes me laugh so much. He makes me the happiest father. He makes me the happiest."

And she knew... she knew she was lucky.

Because he makes her want to be a better version of herself. He makes her want to laugh at times happiness seems miles away. He makes her understand that falling is okay, making mistakes is okay, not being perfect is okay. Being a little too much human is okay.

And oh how much he had taught her.

About living rather than existing.

She was falling for every inch of him.

And she was happy to let herself love him a little more by every passing second.

Her home had a heartbeat.