Hey You ⌲ Paul McCartney

11 // beware of darkness

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July 7, 1961 // 1:06 am
{ Soundtrack; Beware of Darkness - George Harrison }

"Dad... Please don't get mad when I say this, but... I got in a car wreck," I mumbled into the phone, quietly sobbing away from it. I didn't want him to worry.

"Are you in the hospital? Are you okay? I'm calling your mutha," there was a eerie sense of urgency in his voice that I've never heard before; one that scared me and one that made me feel the worst of all aches.

"No! No... Please don't. I'm alright, I promise. I just went to get ice cream with John... But an animal crossed onto the road and he swerved, but I'm alright, really," I tried to explain without bursting out crying. My wrist and head was hurting, and I also felt I let the one person I loved the most down.

"Which John? Is it the troublesome one in that skiffle group? What's his name, Lennon?"

"Yes, but I've got to go, Dad. I'll be back home in an hour or so." I then hung up before he could yell at me for not being responsible enough.

After my arm got casted for mildly fracturing it, I made my way home. It hurt me to know that John was nowhere to be found. He threw himself in front of me during the crash and after the crash, he made sure I was okay and called the ambulance before even checking himself. But now, I couldn't thank him, because I couldn't find him.

I snuck inside my house and hid behind the staircase. I couldn't let him know I was home because then he would lecture me and I wouldn't hear the end of it. But before I took another step, I heard him shouting at something or someone.

"I'm pretty sure she's dating the bloke down on Menlove Avenue. He's trouble... But I hope she rubs off on him, she's a good kid," he started and I felt myself lean back, hiding behind the staircase. "But, unfortunately, he's going to break her heart... I just know it."

"She's just a teenager, Louis," Another voice alerted and I let out a gasp at the sound of her voice. "I was just like her, really. Falling in love with the boy everyone despises with a passion. And I'm happy to conclude that I am in love with him."

Dad looked absolutely crushed to hear those last words. I knew he never really got over the fact that she was in love with someone else.

"What happened to us, Emily? Why couldn't we be a family? Your daughter needs you. You can tell by her actions - she's just like you when we first started dating. We were so in love until you met that Ivy League bloke. You deserve someone who knows how to have fun."

"No, I deserve to have a man who isn't an exact copy of Buddy Holly! We broke it off because you lacked individuality!"

"I'm not talking about my insufficiencies, Em. You named our bloody daughter after a gender. She makes everyone call her 'Penny Lane' because she dislikes her real name that much," my Dad retaliated and I felt myself go tense. He was right - I always disliked my name, and I've always wanted to change it.

"It's not my fault she doesn't like it! It's unique and authentic unlike you." She then stormed out and slammed the door on her way out. Now that I think and contemplate over these little things, I realized: I really was just like my mother.

I checked the clock to notice it was 2 am. I was immensely fatigued, but I had to get something off my chest.

"Dad, I wanna say I'm sorry for treating you the way I did. You are the most amazing father in the world, you've made me so happy, you've protected me, and you were always there for me," I said as I gently hugged him. Sometimes I was envious whenever someone would hug him, because during that brief moment, they were holding my whole world.

"I love you, Penny Lane." I shot my anxious eyes up at his. He had finally accepted me and my odd choice for a name... and I was eternally grateful.

I smiled to myself as I broke from the hug, making my way upstairs and collapsing onto the bed. It must've been sheer luck that he didn't notice my cast on my wrist. I stared out through the window, staying wide awake with the constant thought of John and the kiss.

~

In the morning I sat up and winced in pain. I must've slept on my wrist wrong, and it was in a distorted position. "Dad!"

"Honey, what's the matter?" He ran up to me. I just shot my eyes down to my wrist, which was twisted out of shape. His dark eyes teared at mine - feeling a great deal of sympathy for me.

His eyes were of a dark blue and that of a numb shade of grey, quite unforgettable and most mesmerizing, and they always soothingly clawed within my own pools of color. It made me sad to see the happiness crumbling within them though, as if he knew his one and only daughter was growing up into something he never expected.

"I'll go get some meds," he said as he tucked me under the covers and walked downstairs. I heard the creak as he opened the door, coming to an abrupt stop. "McCartney's son?"

"Hullo, I just came to see if Penny was alright." It was Paul, I gasped and fell back onto my bed. I tried brushing my hair and flattening it out before he could come upstairs.

"You're in that skiffle group with Lennon, aren't you?" My Dad asked with slow and suppressed anger.

"Yes sir."

"Get out of me house ya sod! You and Lennon are the reason why me daughter is in pain," My Dad defended.

"Please, could I just check on her?" Paul pleaded with strains in his croaky voice.

"No." But then I heard footsteps race upstairs, and I found myself face to face with Paul.

We stood in silence both unsure of what to say. I looked at him desperately trying to find the sparkle in his eyes or the curve in his smile, but his sparkle had faded and the curve was only in his frown. He looked at me and for a split second I saw the spark ignite but then it was gone... again.

He was gone and all that was left of the boy who left me with my beating heart in my hands all those years ago, was really just someone I used to know; a person I wished and hoped I would've ended up with.

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