𝙻𝚘𝚟𝚎 𝚊𝚛𝚘𝚞𝚗𝚍 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚌𝚘𝚛𝚗𝚎𝚛 𝚜𝚝𝚘𝚛𝚎

Ｐｒｏｌｏｇｕｅ

> ᴏɴᴇ ᴡɪsʜ

"𝘏𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘣𝘦𝘦𝘯 𝘪𝘯 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦? 𝘐𝘵'𝘴 𝘱𝘳𝘦𝘵𝘵𝘺 𝘨𝘰𝘰𝘥."

The question stumped you for a second. Tilting your head as confusion weighed inside your mind. Anything you say next could determine how your father perceived you.

It was a strange question to ask a thirteen-year-old who was fresh into puberty and young adulthood. You weren't really sure if you grasped the concept of love, to begin with. You've watched shows about how two or more people come together to form romantic or platonic relationships. You saw your younger classmates in primary school explain that they liked one person more than the other. You saw how your father treated your mother. Kissing, hand holding, teasing. That was the love you had from your perspective. Yet you asked yourself if that was the kind of love you wanted from someone else.

You stole a glance at your father. His gaze was stuck on the mesmerising performance of Mother Nature. In his hand was a bottle of his favourite grape-flavoured soft drink while the other was behind you. You never understood why he liked that kind of sugar drink, it tasted too artificial for you. He had a stern look in his eyes. You tried searching for anything behind them but came back with nought.

You shook your head. "What kind of question is that?"

He snorted at the question, taking another sip.

"I know, I know. I was just curious since my baby is growing up so fast!" He slung an arm to your shoulder to hug you close. "Just yesterday I was changing your diapers and feeding you from the bottle. You'll be a full-fledged adult by the time I finish this drink!" You squirm under his grasp, stubbornly pulling away as he gives you silly kissy faces.

"DAD!"

After a few minutes of mindless teasing, he pulled away. His focus is back on the setting sun. You puffed out your cheeks, demanding his attention on you again. "You're so weird, you know? Are you scared that your little angel is gonna fly too close to the sun?" You both chuckled, but the smile he had didn't meet his eyes.

Silence washed over the two of you. It wasn't uncomfortable, but it wasn't an enjoyable one either. You chewed the inside of your cheek, anxiety bubbling at the pit of your stomach.

You took the time to let the breeze lightly gloss over your features. Your hair swayed in the wind as the air cleansed your lungs. You and your father were out by the park sitting by the bench. The pathways overflowed with people engaged in idle chatter, barking dogs, and running cars, yet it was still peaceful. Dusk kissed the horizon with its humble lips. A world full of purple and orange seeped into the blue sky together in a dance of pure bliss. Just like how your mind was intertwined around the question.

"I want you to be good, okay? Especially to your mother. You know how worried she gets over everything."

You pressed your lips firmly, following his gaze directed at the sun. You opened your mouth to speak but he beat you to it. His voice was low, barely above a whisper. A dash of sincerity was sprinkled behind his affirming words. 

"And I want you to eat well. Not always that cup noodles you buy after school. And study hard. I'm not expecting you to always pass at everything but choose subjects you enjoy so you can get into a good university. I don't mind if you get a partner for experience while in school, but you need to focus on your studies. After that, you can then have a committed relationship. You're young and I want you to live your childhood to the fullest. But if anyone breaks your heart I'll-."