What It's Like Losing A Father

Chapter 2: The Six Words I Hate

Now that was strange. Don't come back for six or seven hours? We were only about two and a half hours away. Much of me thought that perhaps he had broken something at the house and wanted time to fix it, or that he was throwing a surprise party. But just like any sane human being, my mind wandered to the worst-case scenario. What if our house had burned down or someone had gotten hurt?

My mom tried texting him to see what was going on, but Evan refused to give any details. I then distinctly remember her saying "I have contacts at home, and I'll use them if I need to." She planned to call one of our neighbors in a few minutes, after we stopped at a gas station. As we walked in, I remember brushing past an elderly man walking to the bathroom and just being jealous of him for what a normal day he was probably having. I never was a fan of mystery and risk, and these odd texts were making me nervous, almost to the point of panic.

When we got back on the road, Matt got another text, but this time from one of his good friends at home. It simply said: "There are ambulances in front of your house." Once I heard that, I got transported to another reality where I had to constantly remind myself to breath and stay conscious. Whatever was going on at home, it was now obviously very bad. I couldn't accept the fact that my life could change forever today. All four of us just sat in silence for a few minutes. Then my mom got a call from a number she didn't recognize. Under normal circumstances, she wouldn't have picked up, but today was definitely not a normal day.

"Hello?"

-Unintelligible words-

-Silence-

Then my mom pulled suddenly over to the side of the road, and I heard the six words that would resound in my soul more deeply than anything else anyone would ever say.

"Apparently your father has passed away."