Time seemed to slow. From the moment that she had entered the classroom, she knew that things had changed. But her father hadn't changed everything. Despite that they were about to stand face to face, she turned her attention towards the door and waited. This moment wasn't any different. She had always been waiting.
As she took a deeper look, she turned towards the desk, her hands grasping the frame. She recognized the pink tutu, the little girl that wore it, and the fact that it had been taken after her performance. The one he didn't attend. The only year that she took it. She thought that he had hated it, when she had given him the frame with the picture inside, for his birthday.
He had acted like he had liked it, but the little girl inside knew that he hadn't. His footsteps trailed. Her hands ran over the frame at the excitement at the prospect of surprising him. She swore she could feel his eyes on her as he stood at the frame of the door, probably exactly where she had been standing minutes ago.
Running her hand over the frame, she felt her mother's hand grasp hers, and as a six year old girl Megan walked down the aisle with her allowance stuffed deeply into her jean pockets. Had she been foolish to let herself believe that he would really like her gift? So what was it doing here?
"It's hard to believe that was you." She didn't turn to look at him. Didn't have to realize how he knew who she was. She was his daughter. Or was she? Because she didn't feel like she was.
"Came a long way from being that little girl." Megan pointed out quickly, turning around to face him. Her green eyes slowly leveling with his. She had changed so much, became so wise. As a child he had never acknowledged how smart she had been, and how smart she was. Actually he had never really acknowledged her at all. So what was it about this reunion between them that told him that he didn't deserve this?
He nodded intently as his gaze fell upon the picture, her hand resting just in front of it. And he was aware of how much her manner reminded him of his own father, "You have." except his father hadn't messed up with his him, like Milo had with his daughter. Now he was beginning to understand the consequences as she stood there. He had never been one to take lightly to her. Every frustration had been put upon her shoulders, which made him wroth in who she was as a person, her decision to run away when she had been sixteen, and especially her career choice. So when had he decide to look in her direction of thoughts?
She looked around just for the point. "Never would have taken you for the teaching type." He nodded, an almost smirk playing upon his lips, in happiness of what he teaching had made him discover, then it all faded as something deep down inside made him realize the spark of green fury contently dancing in her eyes.
And this time he figured that it was time to choose his words carefully. "We both know by now that my way of handling situations wasn't remarkably memorable for you." She didn't look quite satisfied, but he was still glad that she was even still listening. As if they were actually being civil to each other. "Neither was I great at warming up to teaching or learning how to gain patience." He took in a deep breath as she nodded almost shortly.
For a moment she softened her approach, with a dangerous raise of her eyebrow. "I'm glad you finally realized patience is a virtue, but it's not going to do you any good here." Her voice began to raise to a somewhat remorse but apparent level of anger as her green eyes striked against his. "If you could really see how many times I didn't get you, you would have seen a little girl that felt like she was being suffocated and trapped and that was the only possible way that she could make him see was running away from it all. If you were to look deeper you would see a child who did everything in her power to make her father happy, including being that little boy that he never got, but the little girl who still never got anything in return. And if you could see that you would realize how equally much I loved you, but that you never showed me that love that I desperately wanted, but no longer need from you."
He felt crushed inside, her last words breaking an enormous impact on him. His forehead creased as they stayed silent and in realization found sight of her pain.
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