The Neverland Inn : One-Shot Collection

NL Fatherhood: S3E5

Paris nodded to coax him to step inside and Dee clicks the rope back onto the rail behind them, they promised to keep everyone away and Paris closed the door.

Prince stood infront of his father's fireplace mantle and he breathed,
"I didn't know he kept most of this.."

Michael had kept many pictures of his children across the mantle shelf and Prince picks up the one from his fifth birthday.
He wore a party hat with vanilla cake frosting all across his face as his father cleaned him up laughing.

Prince half smiled and Paris knew where Michael stood. In the back, next to the piano awkwardly. She steps backwards, standing next to his side and she smiled but stayed quiet.
"Would you ever wanna talk to Daddy again, Prince?" She asks slyly and he steps further down the mantle, taking in all the photos.

"Well yeah, of course I would."
She looks to Michael smiling wide and Michael sighed. He lets himself be seen and he fixes his form to something familiar. His hair was long and to his shoulders, he wore a black button up and a ring on his finger.
He spoke soft so he wouldn't startle his son and he says outloud,
"What if I told you, you could..."

Prince was haulted from all movement and a cold chill ran rampid up his spine with the speed of sound.

The sound of his father's voice.

He looks into the mantle's long stretched mirror and he sees Michael standing next to Paris in the reflection. His eyes shot black being so wide and he spun around with the small framed picture hitting the hardwood.
"Paris!" He jolted and Michael stepped forward calming him with steadying hands,
"Prince, Its okay. It's just me."

He couldn't just be calm he almost screamed, "Paris! Get me outta here!"

Paris comes next to her father and she says,
"Prince it's okay. It's daddy, look. He's here with us. This is him.."

Prince looked terrified and conflicted and stared into what he wanted to believe was his father. Prince was startled and Paris comes to try and calm him but he refused.
"This is fucked!" He shouted and he bolted. He tore the door open and he kicked the velvet rope to the side. The girls stood at the end of the hall and he pushed them aside in a furious shove.
"Thanks for telling me." He snarled and the hostesses were speechless. Paris ran after him and she shouted down the steps as he stormed towards the front door.
"I knew it was a mistake bringing you here!"
He spun around and Michael loomed outside his door. He stood hidden in hallway and he listened to his grown children now argue.
"Then why'd you ask me to come huh? Why didn't you just bring Blanket?"

He was seething and Paris became hysterical trotting down the steps,
"Because I thought you'd wanna see our father!!"

"You mean your father!!"
Prince screamed and Michael cringed.

He held his heart like it had just broken and the girls were sure it had.

"What the fuck is that supposed to mean!!" Paris said with tears now pouring and she sobbed outloud.

Prince slammed the door behind him and the house shook. Paris held her mouth but she didn't make a sound she held onto the rail and the girls didn't know whether to comfort her. She wiped her face and she took the shoulder bag she carried and slung it furious to the door. It crashed into a vase making the shatter twice as loud.

Michael comes and he pulls his daughter close. She sobbed onto his shoulder and she sputtered,
"I'm sorry, Dad. I just thought- maybe..you'd wanna see him."

He hushed her and rubbed her back. He shushes her cries and he says,
"I'll fix it. I will. But you have to stay here. You should calm down before you try and mend things."