The World's Most Eligible Bachelor

Week 6: Filling in the Blanks

*HARPER'S Point of View*

Thursday morning, after being discharged from the hospital, I was sitting on the floor at my father's house, in front of my suitcase. Everything had been shoved in, creating one big tangled mess. I sorted through, trying to remember what was clean and what was dirty so I could run a few loads of laundry. My fancy dresses were all wrinkled and matted. I took them out and threw them on the couch in exasperation. I had filled a small basket with dirty laundry when I my dad walked in. 

"Come on, Dimples, you should be resting," he insisted.

"Dad," I whined. "I have to do some laundry so I have clothes to wear. The evening gowns are ruined, and I probably won't need them anyway," I said, laughing.

"No, I guess they wouldn't be very practical here would they?" He said, joining me in laughing.

"I just want to wear my own clothes," I pressed. "Can I just do a load or two?" 

"I'll wash them. You get rested up," he ordered as he picked up my basket and headed to the laundry room.

I laid on the couch and pulled the suitcase towards me so I could keep sifting through it. "Dad, you know I'm not sick, right?" I yelled to the other room. "All the drugs are out of my system and I feel fine now." 

"The next few days are going to be tiring and probably emotional," he said, coming back into the room where I laid. "Just don't want you to get worn out."

"Speaking of emotional," I said, rolling to my side to look at him. "With all the craziness of the past few days, I haven't had a chance to talk to you, but it's really important that I do, before things get crazy again."

"All right," he said, sitting down in the armchair near my head. "What's going on?" 

"I told you that Harry and I had an overnight date in Dublin."

"Mmhmm." I could sense him tense up. I wondered if that was because he knew what was coming, or just because the idea of Harry and me spending the night together made him think about things that a father would rather not think about.

"We went to a brewery and...umm...shit, Dad, there's no easy way to say this. I saw Mom." 

I looked at him to see how he would react. His face held an expression of shock as if someone had just delivered a sucker punch to his gut. I knew he couldn't decide what to say. 

I sat up so I could face him more directly. "I saw her two daughters." I choked on the emotion, even though I thought I had already worked through it. "She had other daughters, Daddy," I trembled, and once again, I was sobbing.

He came and sat next to me, gathering me into his arms. "I know, sweetie, I know." I cried against his chest while he shushed me. "I'm so sorry." 

I finally sat up and caught my breath again. "She told me she sent you a letter, and that she called on my 18th birthday..." I left it there and looked into his eyes for an explanation. 

"I'm sorry, Harper. I couldn't tell you when she sent that letter. I just couldn't. You were crushed when she left, and so was I. We were just learning how to live again when I got that letter. It helped me to move on, but I didn't want you to think there was any chance..." His words caught in his throat, and I knew he was crying. He cleared his throat and continued, "That there was any chance she was coming back. I couldn't stand to see you hurt all over again." He squeezed me in a tight hug and said, "I'm so sorry."

"No," I said, laughing through the fresh tears. "I completely understand why you kept it from me. I would have done the same thing if I were you. And to be honest, I'm glad it helped you to get some closure. I was just...shocked that you knew all along."