Mind of His

31. Be Alright

Fiona POV

The next day at 7:45 in the morning, I was getting ready to go to the hospital when there was a knock at the door. I grabbed my phone and stuffed it into my purse then hurried over to the door.

I opened it to reveal an older man standing there. It took me two seconds to recognize that the man standing in front of me with a somber look on his bearded face was...

"Dad?"

He shifted on his heels and cleared his throat. "Hi, Fiona."

We stood facing each other for a long moment. Suddenly, I stepped forward and wrapped my arms around him.

He seemed startled at first, but then he hugged me tightly back. I heard him sniff quickly before pulling away, keeping his hands on my shoulders.

His eyes looked teary, as he blinked a few to many times. "I've missed you."

I felt the tears sting my eyes too and said quietly, "It's been too long, Dad."

He put his hands back into his pockets with a guilty look on his face. "I know it has, I know."

We stood awkwardly, unsure of what to say next. I knew why he was here. The thought of it made a heavy feeling return to my stomach. Why did it have to be in the bad moments when we get to see each other again? Why is it the bad things that bring us together?

"I heard about Lillian and Clem," he said, his deep voice quivering just slightly saying their names.

"I visited yesterday and she's still unconscious. With breathing support."

"Let's not waste any time and go visit her together."

I nodded because there was nothing more to say. We walked down the hallway together and into my Uber.

We didn't say anything for the whole drive there, but when we were almost there, I could see the pain and nervousness in my Dad's face, so I took his hand and gave it a little squeeze. He smiled ever so slightly behind his grey, bushy beard that had not been there the last time I had seen him. He held onto my hand as if it was the strength he needed to go in there and see his daughter in a coma.

When we got to Lillian's room, I couldn't help but feel crushed that she was still only lying there in the same position as last night. But for my dad, it was even more painful. As I walked to her side, he just stood there staring, in a daze.

"Dad," I called softly. "It's ok, come over here." He slowly walked over to me, keeping his eyes on Lillian's body. When he was close enough to see her face, he suddenly fell to his knees, sobbing.

Shocked, I stood back watching. He sobbed loud, choking sobs and buried his face in one hand. I had never before seen him so vulnerable. After a moment of initial shock,  I moved closer to him and pulled him back to his feet and into a hug.

"They said she's going to be alright," I said in a comforting tone. He nodded, harshly rubbing his red eyes with his thumb and first finger. Hopefully I sounded convincing enough to him, though I couldn't entirely convince myself.

*******

After a long visit of speaking softly to Lillian, we went back to the hotel and I invited my dad into my room to talk for a while before figuring out what else more there was to do.  He had now recovered himself but was more quiet and dazed than usual.

"I'm going to be staying here for a week," I said. "I'm sure she'll be awake before the end of this week." Of course, I wasn't sure, but I needed to encourage myself of something good.