Easy As Falling Off A Bike pt 1255.

Printer-friendly version

Author: 

Audience Rating: 

Publication: 

Genre: 

Character Age: 

TG Themes: 

Permission: 

The Daily Dormouse.
(aka Bike)
Part 1255
by Angharad

Copyright © 2011 Angharad
All Rights Reserved.
  
-Dormouse-001.jpg

“He is much more stable than he was before you came last night, his blood pressure is good, his blood levels are good, his kidneys and liver seem to be functioning normally–so we don’t understand why he won’t come round.”

“May I try and work with him again?”

“Of course, just give me a shout if you need anything?”

“I will.”

“Oh, and one other thing, thanks for what you did for me. Maybe you really are an angel.”

“Yeah, fallen variety.” After the exchange with nurse Jolene, I went in to see Daddy. I announced my presence as I walked towards the bed. “Hi, Daddy, isn’t it about time you woke up, you lazy bones?”

I sat alongside him, “I need to get back to the children so we need you to get your bum in gear and sort yourself out and stop this sulking.” I seemed to get no response from this direct approach. I took hold of his hand and began talking to him again.

“There have been some differences between us, but they’re as hairline cracks not chasms, so c’mon and help me heal them. We all need you, Daddy, you’re an integral part of the family, please you must start to come back to us–whatever has happened, it’s in the past and we need to move on.”

I saw his eyes moving under his closed eyelids, it could mean he was thinking about what I said or he might be dreaming, in which case it was like REM sleep. I wanted to know what he was thinking so I could alter my approach as necessary.

I felt the energy flowing between us and as I centred down I began to think myself inside his mind. I felt myself in a place of immense darkness in which was an almost tangible sense of sadness. Where on earth was I?

I focused on a sense of love and in particular, my love for him and his supportive love to me. In my hand I visualised a light which might help me locate him and when I looked, I was holding a lamp in the shape of a heart which emanated a rose pink light.

I concentrated on sending him love and the lamp began to turn in my hand and shine in one direction, I followed the light, really concentrating on sending him my love, and love is unconditional.

The lamp continued to guide me as I sent my love, and as I walked in the direction offered I thought I could hear someone weeping. I turned down the lamp and walked towards the sobbing. Eventually, I could make out a young man and woman they were talking and it was the man who was weeping.

“Diana, I love ye, he disnae and ye dinna love him–stay wi’ me.”

“You don’t understand do you, Tom, it isn’t about love, it’s about prospects and Godrick has more than you, he’s going to make it big one day, you–you’ll always be weak, putting your scruples before your own desires.”

“That’s hoo I wis taught tae act, wi’ dignity an’ honesty, it’s no a’ aboot money an’ power.”

“Isn’t it, Tom. It is for some of us. You’re a good man, go back to your test tubes and enjoy your poverty, at least it’s honest.” I watched as she walked away from him and I felt my anger rising, she was pure gold digger with no love for anything but herself.

The scene changed in front of me and I saw Tom with a younger woman. “Ye’ve a lang road ahead o’ye, if ye really want tae dae this.”

“It’s what I have to do, Daddy. All I ask is that you love me as much as a girl as you did when I was supposed to be a boy.”

“Yer Ma an’ I ‘ll love ye, even if we canna hope tae understand ye or whit ye’re daein’.”

“I don’t understand it myself, Daddy, but then do salmon know why they have a desire to swim up rivers to spawn and probably die?”

“That’s jest thae call o’ nature, it’s pre-programmed intae their heids.”

“This feels like it’s programmed into mine and I have to do it, even if like the salmon, I die at the end of it–at least I tried to be the real me.”

“Och, ye mak’ a bonnie lassie an’ we both love ye, ye ken.”

“I know, Daddy.”

I felt a lump in my throat and then the scene changed before me again. This time an older Tom was with an older woman, “Why did this have to happen?” She sobbed to Tom.

“These things dae, there’s no rhyme or reason tae them, they jest happen.”

“She was all we had, Tom, that, that murderer has taken it all from us because he was drunk, and not a first offence–I’m glad he died, I hope it was in dreadful agony. My darling, my baby–I’ve lost my baby.”

“She wis ma child tae, Celia.”

“Yes, but if you hadn’t agreed to help fund her at Oxford, she’d never have gone there and this wouldn’t have happened. If you hadn’t bought her that car–oh my baby, why did she have to die like this.”

“I dinna ken, ma love, I dinna ken.”

I felt tears flowing down my cheeks as I witnessed this pain. It was no one’s fault unless one blames the drunken driver, it was one of those things, but such a destructive thing which obviously hit her very hard.

Next I was watching him sitting at her bedside as she was very ill and then she died he was distraught and I saw him drive out to the downs and park his car. I watched him take a rope from his boot and walk off into an area of scrubby woodland and as he was about to throw the line over a branch and presumably end his pain, I heard screams. He was in his own world and it took him a moment to realise someone was in trouble.

He ran towards the screams and saw a woman standing beside a flooded swallow hole as her child floundered in the middle of it. Tom saw the danger, gave her the end of the rope and told her to wrap it round a tree and hold the end, then he launched himself into the water and holding on to the rope began searching for the child. I watched with bated breath as he surface time and time again without the boy, then finally he started dragging himself back to the bank and in his left arm was the unconscious boy. He hauled himself out and began to pump the boy out, then administer mouth to mouth. The boy coughed and finally began breathing again. I felt so proud of him, my Daddy, that is and pleased for the boy and his mother. My Daddy was a hero, but then I knew that anyway.

I saw him standing at the graveside. He was alone and he was telling his wife and daughter about what he nearly did and he promised never to do such a thing again, no matter how bad things got.

Then I saw him arguing with Diana and she pushed him and he fell and bumped his head. Then she tied him up, took his car keys and fled. My distaste for her increased. I didn’t see what they were arguing about and I might never know, but if she came near him again, I’d punch her nose and damned hard.

I found myself sitting in the chair next to his inert body. I focused the energy on his head, there didn’t seem to be anything wrong there, or if there had been it had sorted itself.

“Daddy, I remember you telling me that you promised your Catherine and your wife that you’d never do anything silly to yourself after you saved that little boy from drowning. Isn’t this doing just that? Refusing to wake in the hope that you die? Isn’t that doing yourself harm?

“I thought you were a man of your word, obviously promises made to a grave don’t count in your book, and I’m disappointed. I thought you were made of sterner stuff and I also thought you loved your grandchildren and me a bit more than you obviously do. I shall wait here a few more minutes for you to prove me wrong, but I think I see you now, revelling in self pity because she betrayed you again. Time to choose, Daddy, but don’t take too long–I need to go to see people who do love me and who do keep their promises, even if they are only children.”

I felt a lump in my throat, I was taking tremendous risks–what if he didn’t respond or called my bluff? I was hoping that he was still a little confused and not his usual razor sharp mind–then again, this was emotional stuff and men don’t do that too well.

I watched him process what I said, his eyes were moving under his eyelids again and once or twice he seemed to frown as if he didn’t like something–possibly my ultimatum.

I looked at my watch, it was after midnight–I’d been here two hours already. How time flies when... I watched him wrestling with his emotions and tears flowed from his still closed eyes. Then I thought I heard him say something. I squeezed his hand and he repeated it. It was barely audible, but what he said was, “Cathy, don’t go.”

I squeezed his hand again, “Welcome back, Daddy, I’m not going anywhere.”

05Dolce_Red_l_0.jpg



If you liked this post, you can leave a comment and/or a kudos!
Click the Thumbs Up! button below to leave the author a kudos:
up
275 users have voted.
If you liked this post, you can leave a comment and/or a kudos! Click the "Thumbs Up!" button above to leave a Kudos

And please, remember to comment, too! Thanks. 
This story is 1690 words long.