No Angel

VII

Austin Oaks Hospital was one of the nicest mental hospitals in Texas. Demi had made sure of it, even though she should've let him rot in some crappy, understaffed facility after everything that he had put their family through. Whatever. She wasn't completely heartless and as much as she hated to admit to it, he was her father. Fifty percent of her DNA did belong to him. He did help to bring her into this world, even though looking back at her childhood, she wished that he didn't.

"Hi, I'm here to see Patrick Lovato." Demi kept her sunglasses on, not caring if she looked weird or whatever. She wasn't trying to cause a fuss and she wanted to be able to hide her eyes in case she started to cry. Visibly shedding tears in public was such a no-no.

"And you are...?" The receptionist looked way too pretty to be stuck working in a mental hospital but maybe it was her passion. Maybe she loved being surrounded by mentally unstable people all day.

"His daughter, Demi." Her eyes widened in recognition but she didn't say anything. Demi shot her a smile as she wrote her a visitor's pass and directed her to one of the tables where her and Patrick could sit and have sugar free cookies and stale lemonade while pretending that they had some type of normal father-daughter relationship.

Demi looked down at the screen of her blank iPhone 6 as she waited for Patrick to come and join her. She debated if she should turn it on and check all the messages from everyone who was probably freaking out about her suddenly disappearing, but as she heard the scraping of the metal chair against the tiled floor, Demi decided against it and tucked her phone back into her purse before looking up and facing Patrick Lovato, her biological father.

"I wasn't expecting you to come and visit me today, baby girl." Demi shuddered as he spoke and she wasn't sure if it was because of the raspiness of his voice from the years he spent smoking cigars or all the bad memories that came along with that nickname, but it sent chills down her spine as she shook her head.

"Please don't call me that," Demi quietly said, trying not to make eye contact with him because she knew that she probably hurt his feelings. But who cares? What he had done to her was much worse.

"Did you get any of my letters? You never responded or anything, and I've been trying to keep up with you in the news and stuff, just to see what's going on," Patrick said as Demi shook her head again. The inked and wrinkled skin on the edge of his thumb caught her attention, the little "three" there in Roman numerals making her sigh and comb her fingers through her hair.

"No, I don't usually open them. I've just been busy with my music and everything," Demi answered as Patrick nodded, folding his hands together as he leaned forward

"Demi, listen, I just really want to apologize for everything that I've done that has hurt you and your mother and your sister. I know you're bitter and angry and hurting and-"

"What else am I supposed to be?" Demi roared, snatching her sunglasses off of her face so he could see just how angry she was. Was she not supposed to be bitter and angry and hurt about everything that he did to her and her mother and her sister?

"Since I was four years old I have wondered what it's like to have a real father, not whatever you are. And now my mom has Eddie and I'm not much of a fan of him but he has tried to be like the father that I never had but he can't because I'm so messed up from everything that you did to us. I know it's been years and years and I need to let it go and move on and stop letting it affect me but how am I not supposed to be bitter and angry and hurt that the man that was supposed to be my father and protect me did nothing but hurt me and morph me into someone that I don't even want to be?" Demi ranted, but she knew that Patrick didn't have an answer for her. He never did.