*Just a heads up, and I should've said this earlier in the story, but this is placed around 2017-2018. It's also a short chapter.*
The rest of the award ceremonies went like the first. Nominated but never winning an award.
Freddie Highmore was disappointed, but seeing his daughter and her friends have fun was the greatest.
Clara was having a lot of fun. She got to drink sparkling water out of a champagne glass. Life could not get any better. Watching Master Chef, meeting new celebrities, etc. She was living the life.
She really was trying to keep up in school. Her grades weren't going anywhere, but she was staying up late into the night to keep up.
Zach made sure to provide her with extra help and caramel frappes. He worried about Clara sometimes, but he knew her for a while, so he knows this will end soon.
Hopefully.
Bailey made sure to take extra notes and take up for her if anybody noticed she was asleep. He took color coded notes and made them easy to learn.
Clara was just so drained.
"Dad," Clara asked when he came to get her up, "Can I stay home from school today?"
"Of course," Freddie asked. He saw the wear and tear that had been happening to Clara recently, so he gave her the mental health break she needed.
"Can you," she started but didn't finish. "Never mind."
"You can ask me anything, Clara. I won't judge."
"Can you give me a hug? I think I need it."
Freddie immediately hugged her from where she was laying on the bed. He didn't let go. He didn't hear Clara start crying but he knew from the dampness seeping into his shirt.
"I've got you."
Freddie heard the soft sob that made his heart want to break in two. "I'm sorry."
"What for, Clara?"
"Being a burden. For stopping you from having the amazing adult life you should be having. I mean, you're twenty-six years old. You should be doing big movies and stuff like that."
"Clara, you're not a burden."
Clara scoffed.
"As you can remember, because I remember quite clearly, I chose you. I chose to have you in my life. I could've been at your school for a month and gone about my own business. But no. This smart young women grabbed my heartstrings and played down like a guitar. She pulled me in and didn't let go. And Clara, I'm not letting go of you. Ever. So, yes, I could be partying and acting in big movies with people like Tom Cruise, but I don't want to. I chose you and I want you in my life. I'm your dad and maybe I'm not you biological father, but as a wise man once said 'Family don't end in blood'."
Clara gripped Freddie's t-shirt even tighter. She pulled back a little and Freddie wiped the tears from her eyes.
"I love you, Fredmeister."
"And I love you, Clara."