The One Shot Chapters (18+)

Andy Barber - Belated (PT 2)

"Heather". Andy stopped her as she went to get into her car. "Don't leave because of me".

She turned and looked at him. "Now isn't the time to dig up what's buried".

"Now's the perfect fucking time - I need you to hear me out ok?"

Heather closed the car door and shrugged. "So talk - you have a whole like sixteen years worth of things to probably say".

"I made a mistake, I handled things badly back then, and I wanna say I'm sorry for being the asshole that I was".

"One night and you just threw away our friendship, why? Because you didn't want Laurie to know?" She asked.

He nodded. "That and because we had found out she was pregnant a couple of weeks before..." Heather's face fell. "I couldn't leave her, but had things have been different? I would've done. I cut you off because I felt something for you, and I knew that things were messy enough as it was. I had a kid to think about...I didn't want him to have the same fatherless childhood that I had".

She processed this for a moment.

He had a son. He'd had feelings for her but choose his child instead - she couldn't be mad for him wanting to be a good father. She'd known that it had just been him and his mom since he was young. They had been close and then to have him suddenly not there? It had hurt a lot. 

In truth, she'd never really got over that betrayal. 

"What's his name?" Heather now asked about his son.

"Jacob...he's a good kid, you'd love him".

She now noted there was no wedding ring on his finger. "And what about you and Laurie?"

He sighed. "We separated a year or so back, just finalised the divorce actually. She's met someone else, he seems...nice, I suppose..."

"Well...at least you had a happy marriage for the most part".

He half laughed at this, "Did I?" Now looking at her, "I think she's always known I liked you back then, but she's never mentioned it - every time I brought you up she'd change the subject".

"Well I'm sorry if I was part of the reason your marriage ended".

"You weren't" He shook his head. "We'd been having problems for a while, in the end we decided it was better to just separate for Jacob's sake. Listening to the arguments wasn't helping him". 

Heather paused and then looked at him. "You're a good father, even before you were one. You put Jacob first and I can't be angry at you for that. I know you always said that you never wanted to be your father". 

"I'd like to think that I'm not, sometimes part of me wonders whether I am". 

She shook her head in disagreement. "Well I don't think you are. You wouldn't talk about Jacob like you have. Does he live with Laurie?" 

"Yeah, he comes to stay on the weekends. They're a few towns over so it's not too far. He goes to Archer still so he comes here on a Friday after school and stays until the Sunday evening". 

"See? You're close". 

"I guess - he's a typical kid, on his video games and stuff. But we have something my dad and I never did". He then realised that he'd been talking about himself and not asked about her. "You got any kids?" 

Heather shook her head. "My husband never wanted them - hence why he's now an ex".

"Sorry..." 

"I've had my share of let downs". 

Andy shifted. "Yeah, me being one of them", and now looked guilty. "I'm sorry Heather, and I know it probably doesn't mean shit now, but I am sorry for how I handled everything back then...it was never a mistake even if I said that it was". 

She smiled lightly. "You made the right choice, you don't need to be sorry for that, and as for what happened being a mistake? I knew it wasn't either". 

He pondered for a moment. "Think we could be friends again?". 

"We always have been".