Dan The Dad (Phan)

12

"Are you ready to meet my family?" I asked and she nodded making her long curls bounce.

"Good, they should be here-" I was cut off by a knock at the door. I answered it and let my mother, my dad, and my younger brother inside. I watched as Megan watched them pile in but her eyes lit up when she saw my mother who was carrying food.

"Who's the girl?" Adrian asked and gave her an odd look as she approached my mother and just stood there in front of her. I was at a loss for words, I didn't know if have to break it to them this soon.

"Hello nanna." Megan said to my mother who handed off the food she was carrying to me as a huge grin spread across her face.

"Hello sweetheart" my mother went down to her level and they hugged each other for a long time, my mother looked so happy she might've started crying. I looked back to my father who wore a confused expression and my brother seemed to know already because his jaw was dropped and looking from me to Megan.

"Everyone, this is Megan." I mumbled feeling nervous as my face heated.

"Daddy, who are the other two?" Megan asked me.

"That's my dad, who is your grandpa and my little brother who is your uncle." I pointed to them.

"What. The. Fu-"

"Adrian!" My mother snapped at him before he could get the last bit of the curse word out.

"No, I'd have to agree with him. Daniel, what is this?" My father demanded to know.

"Here, would you like to go play with me in the lounge?" My mother asked Megan and took her out of the room.

"So..." I began as I looked at my father and brother who waited on answers. "Megan is my daughter."

"Yeah, no shit. How did this even happen?" Adrian asked.

"And how could you not tell us?!" My father chimed in.

"Let me explain." I said calmly. "A few years back, like five years ago, I made a mistake when I was drunk and cheated on Phil, from that came Megan. I didn't know about her until I ran into her mother recently and saw her. I demanded to see her and I had to threaten to take her away from her in order to do so. Mum stopped by Agee days ago and she just knew so we set this up to tell the both of you." I explained.

"Mum knew?!" Adrian said in shock.

"Okay." My father sighed. "So let me get this straight, you had no idea that she even existed? Have you taken a paternity test?"

"Do I even need to?! Look at her!" I said.

"Yes, you need to. It sounds to me like you have a lawsuit on you hands." My dad said.

"Why would I do that?" I asked.

"Dan, oh my god why are you so stupid?" Adrian said. "Her mother clearly wasn't even going to let you see her. What if she just decides to take her away again? Do you even love this kid enough to care?"

"Of course I love her! I'm quite attached to her now, but I don't see a reason to just up and take her mother to court when she's letting me see her." I said.

"She's probably going to try to control things, Dan. Just think about it, alright?" My dad said.

"Yeah, you're right, I will." I said. "Why don't you both go meet your granddaughter and niece and I'll go put these on the table in the kitchen." I said and took the food that they were also carrying.

I stood in  lounge doorway to see my mother and father carrying on a conversation with Megan and Adrian was in the chair on his phone.

"Adrian." I called for him and he looked at me motioning for him to come over to me.

"Why don't you talk to her or play with her or something?" I suggested in a whisper after he had come over to me

"I really don't know anything about kids, I don't know her at all." He said.

"I know, it was hard for me too, but children aren't really as hard to figure out as you think. Just get down there and don't be afraid to look like an idiot." I said.

"She looks exactly like you." He said looking into the living room "you know the family photos from when I was born? That's what she looks like, you in those photos when I was born." He said as she offered our dad a doll.

"I remember when you were born, so that means she'll probably remember meeting you, so please just play with her and don't make her think you don't like her." I told him, he gave me a nod and sat down on the floor beside her.

"Hello." He said to her making her turn and look at him very carefully.

"You look like daddy." She said and then looked at my parents "You all look so much like daddy." She said in a very high pitched voice.

"So do you." Adrian pointed out as my parents laughed at her cuteness.

"I know. But I don't look like mummy and I didn't know why, but now I do. It's because I look like all of you. Do you all have the same second name?" She asked.

"Yes, our surname is Howell." My dad said.

"What's yours?" My mum asked

"I'm Megan Rose Harper, that's funny." She said.

"What is?" My mother asked her.

"Our surted names both start with the letter H, don't they?" She said and even though she mispronounced the word 'surname' I was surprised.

"Nice job!" My mother coped with the same surprise I felt.

"You can read?!" I exclaimed from the doorway and she looked at me and nodded. "Oh my god." I said  making Adrian crack up into laughter.

"Nice, you didn't even know she could read." He laughed.

"But when we played Mortal Kombat you made me read 'fatality' for you?" I said.

"You let her play Mortal Kombat?!" Adrian's fit of laughter grew.

"I couldn't read that word." She explained.

"What's Mortal Kombat?" My mum asked.

"It's a really violent game where you-" I immediately cut off Adrian.

"Shut up." I told him quickly.

"Shut up!" Megan repeated I'm tone only higher pitched.

"No, no we don't say that." I told her I felt like I was continuously digging myself a hole of bad parenting that I couldn't escape from.

"But you just said it." Megan said sadly.

"Daddy messed up. I'm sorry for telling you that Adrian, I know that wasn't nice of me." I apologized to him just so she could hear it and know it was wrong.

"I never want to hear you refer to your self as daddy ever again." Adrian cringed.

"I use to around you both and so did your mother. It's not as strange to him probably as it sounds to you." My dad said.

"No, it's still strange." I laughed.

"It's odd to me hearing a child calling you that. You're still my baby and it's hard to wrap my head around." My mum said and she looked like she was going cry again "it's even more odd being called nanna though." She let out a laugh.

"Does it make you feel old?" I asked her.

"Mum is old." Adrian said.

"What do I call you then?" Megan asked my mum in confusion.

"I love the Name nana, you're the first to ever get to call me it, so you're special." My mum told her making her face light up.

"I don't want children and Dan is gay so she's probably going to be the last too." Adrian said and I only started to panic when Megan's confused brown eyes landed on me.

"Daddy, what's gay and why are you it?" She asked making the room go quiet and and look at me. I didn't know if I should explain it to her or not. I hoped that someone would speak up and answer for me, but no one did.