Sorry about your parents (Eloise)

[Everett Eaton]

(back dated to the day of graduation)

Everett had just gotten off a plane and was waiting for a cab to come get him. He stood in the airport, just waiting, not really feeling all that well at the moment. He was tired, and sore, and a really big part of him was just sad. Missing your only child’s graduation could bring it’s toll on someone, and that’s what had happened to Everett. Eloise must be very disappointed, and hurt, and he really couldn’t blame her for those feelings. He hadn’t talk to her since the airport where he found out his plane was going to be delayed for takeoff. And really he didn’t even remember why it was delayed he was to upset and disappointed.

Finally the cab had arrived, throwing his suit cases (yes more than one because he didn’t know how long he would be staying) into the trunk of the cab, he then hopped into the cab and the driver took off to the hotel he was staying at. During the drive Everett texted Eloise saying he was on the way to the hotel. If she wanted to come by she totally could, though he was hopping not for a couple hours, because he really wanted to take a nap… He ended up taking a nap in the cab, he woke up from the driver yelling at him that he was at his hotel.

Paying the driver, and taking his bags he got his room key and went to is hotel. Maybe he could take a quick shower too… He sent another text to Eloise saying he was at the hotel. Never mentioning that she could come say hi, he didn’t think she would want to talk to him.

Here he was in his hotel room, he stripped off his clothes, and hopped in the shower, sighing deeply at the comforting hot water.

[Eloise Eaton]

The graduation ceremony was fairly uneventful - the moderator listing everyone's names as they crossed the stage to receive their diploma. Frankly, most of the faces were strangers to Eloise. She didn't have as much emotional attachment to the school as some of the students - after all she had only attended for a year. She did, of course, clap a little bit louder for Monroe, as well as a few other faces she did recognize.

She had tried to convince herself that her father's absence wasn't that big of a deal. It wasn't his fault after all. She didn't even really think about it for the entire ceremony - which was almost painfully slow. In Eloise's opinion there were one too many speakers, and too few shenanigans for a graduation of a meta high school.

No, it wasn't until after the ceremony when Everett's absence truly started to weigh on Eloise. While many other students ran to proud parents, tears in their eyes as they hugged friends, Eloise stayed in her seat. She received a quick congratulations from Monroe, then lost him as he went off to find his mother in the crowd. There wasn't anyone for Eloise to find or go to. Eventually she just got up and walked home. She took the long way, too, finally getting a text once she was near her new apartment that her father had finally landed. It was pretty crappy that he was only a couple hours late, too. So close, but nowhere near close enough.

Eloise wasn't sure she could handle seeing her dad. She took a long shower, and changed into jeans and a plain t shirt - something Eloise would really only ever where when her mind was elsewhere. She sat on the couch and stared at the wall for a bit. She had to receive her dad's second text before deciding that she needed to go to the hotel. She couldn't sit alone in her apartment all night after sitting alone after the graduation ceremony for so long.She decided, too, after some internal debate, to bring her graduation cap. Maybe her father would want to see it... She grabbed a shoulder bag and threw in her phone and wallet before heading out, deciding to walk instead of take the bus (because ironically for a girl with a fair sum of cash, Eloise wasn't really interested in buying a car).

It did take a while for Eloise to get to the hotel, as if was on the other side of Pilot Ridge. It gave Eloise plenty of time to mull over what she might say to her dad. On how to make sure she didn't come across as too upset - because although disapointed, Eloise realized it wasn't completely her father's fault. He could have booked an earlier flight... one that got him to Vermont a few days early even... but El was sure he was busy.

She found her way to the hotel, and made her way up to the top floor, down the hall to the room her father was staying in. She sighed, playing with the tassel on her cap between her fingers for a moment, before raising her hand and knocking on the door. She wondered what her dad even looked like these days. He was one to often change things up, and she hadn't seen him in a while.

[Everett Eaton]

There were no amount of words that could describe how much he knew she was disappointed in him. But he still hoped he could make it up to her, he had decided that he will take her out to dinner, and shopping, where she can go on a shopping spree like always… He knew it probably wouldn’t be anything special, but it was something he hoped would make up for what he had missed.

Stepping out of the shower, he dried off and got dressed. As he got dressed he felt tears stinging his eyes, once fully dressed he leaned against a bare wall and rubbed his eyes. Tears drops landed on the flour as he realized what a massive day he really had missed. It hurt like nothing else, he had missed all the little moments of bonding with her because he was too busy trying to protect her, and himself. He regretted a lot of things, not just because of Eloise, but because all of it took a toll on himself as well.

But now she could have a regular life, one with or without him. She can go to college and not have to worry about moving anywhere, whether Everett did or not. The past year he had dearly missed his only daughter, and wished he could have been there more for her last year in high school. Now he was just dreaming, he couldn’t take back the past and start over, he just had to live on. He whipped his eyes, and hung up his towel.

Heading into the main room, he heard a knock on the door, was it Eloise? He wasn’t expecting any company, and he only told two people what hotel he was staying at. His brow furrowed in confusion, and curiosity. He opened the door to see his beautiful daughter. Everett smiled at her, and then hugged her, tightly too. “I missed you. And I’m really sorry.”

[Eloise Eaton]

When the door open, and Eloise's father wrapped his arms around her, the girl's emotions hit her like a brick wall. She didn't even realize how much she had missed her dad - how much she wished that he was at the ceremony - until she saw his face, and felt his presence. It was strange, because Eloise was not one to get so emotional... She buried her face into her dad's shoulder momentarily, blinking back the few tears that threatened to fall. She didn't want to make her dad feel any worse than he probably did. "I missed you too," Eloise sighed, squeezing her dad a little tighter before letting him go and stepping back, tucking a piece of her blonde hair behind her ear.

"And... it's ok," Eloise said, though the feeling pulling at her gut told her it wasn't. "It was a pretty boring ceremony anyway," Eloise said honestly, a small smile tugging at her lips. "I uh... I brought my cap and tassel to show you though," she said, handing him the silver cap in her hands. "In case you wanted some proof that it actually happened," she joked, willing away the negative feelings.

She was aware of how bad her dad wanted to be there. She knew there wasn't much he could have done to get there any faster. Sure, she wasn't sure why he couldn't have arranged travel for a few days earlier, but she rarely questioned Everett's motivations - he was always on the move and always seemed busy. "Can I come in?" Eloise asked with a small laugh, seeing as she hadn't even been able to make it past the doorway since her father had opened it.

[Everett Eaton]

Everett knew it wasn’t okay, only because he had read her thoughts for a split second. He was not opposed to reading her thoughts, which would probably make him more stern than normal parents because he could easily tell when she’s lying, and punish her. Though, there were things that he let slide, because he didn’t feel like it was all that big of a deal. He smiled a little, as she stepped back, he didn’t want to ever let her go, and he missed those times where she would crawl into his bed at night.

“Well, I’m going to make it up to you. I figured we will go shopping, and go anywhere you want to go.” That was really only the start, “Do you have a place to live? Are you going to dorm in the college?” He looked down at the cap, and took it from Eloise, smiling, “I am so proud of you. I hope you know that.” He could not excuse the fact that he showed up late to her graduation, ad missing it completely. He should have taken an earlier flight, but he had been in the middle of finishing a book when he got the tickets, and it had been just a huge mess. Not to mention throughout the past year Everett had been working with his publisher on making her the known writer of his books.

“Oh right! Sure.” He moved out of the way, his fingers running of the fabric of Eloise’s cap. “How have you been? Make yourself at home!” Even though he hadn’t gotten the chance to do so… He motioned to the few chairs in the room, and the bed. He chose to sit on a chair that was next to a small table.

[Eloise Eaton]

"I know..." Eloise said with a small smile, when her father expressed his pride. She didn't have to read his mind to know, but the little bit that came through made it abundantly clear how proud (and sorry) her father was. Eloise often didn't read her father's mind. Things just got messy that way. She liked to avoid it. But in moments like these, it was nice to know her fathers words were even more genuine than she could have believed.

She walked into the room, looking around a little before deciding to slip off her shoes and sit on the bed. "Shopping sounds alright. There's not a lot of it to do here, though," El explained as she sat on the bed cross-legged with her back against the headboard. "I have found a place to live though," El said. If Pilot Ridge was good for anything, it was real estate. "I've rented out an apartment for the year along with a friend. But umm..." Eloise started, looking down into her lap as her fingers played with the hem of her shirt. She hoped that what she was about to admit wouldn't make her dad any less proud than he was a few moments ago. "I've decided to... wait a year or so for college," she admitted, looking up to her dad. "I want to take a year off... I want to work on my portfolio and start applying for design school in the fall," Eloise explained her plan. "And... maybe even some business schools, something in fashion merchandising." She bit her lip in anticipation for her dad's reaction. She tore her eyes away, like it would keep her father from reacting negatively. She didn't know what to expect really. She hadn't really talked to her father about any of her future plans. She hadn't really talked to him at all as of late.

She looked around the room again. It reminded her a bit of the times they had up and moved without much warning. Her father would take them to a hotel until they found a more permanent living arrangement. She wondered how long he'd be staying here. It was a pretty spacey room with a kitchenette and a dining table. "How long are you staying?" she inquired, hoping to change the subject a bit.

[Everett Eaton]

Sometimes it was easy with both of them being telepaths, other times it was harder. It gave Everett a way to know when his daughter was lying, or telling the truth, or when she wasn’t telling him something. Not that he did it all the time, he did let her have some privacy, even more so now that she wasn’t living with him, and that she was eighteen, there wasn’t much punishment he could do now. She was going to have to learn her own lessons, and life was going to have to be her parent.

Just ‘alright’ didn’t comfort Everett the way he thought it would, actually it did very little comforting at all. He had hoped that shopping would be something Eloise would love… But maybe if he uped the shopping options… “That’s good, I’m glad you took a step in your own life to find a place on your own.” Not that he would have minded Eloise living with him, the idea had excited him just a little that he would have his little girl back to take care of. It had been quite lonely, maybe that’s why he had gotten two dogs… But if she was getting her own place, and not living in the college dorms, then maybe there was a graduating gift he could get her, because he knew there was something she has always wanted… “A year off, huh? Well that is fine, but you have to promise me that while you are taking this year off that you will find a job. If you are going to live on your own, you need to take responsibility for caring for yourself, which means having your own income, and paying your own bills.” This was not him saying that she was cut off from the family money, but he wanted her to learn how to care for herself and how to actually have a job, everyone needs to learn how to walk before they run.


Smiling, he raised an eyebrow at her question, “Two weeks. So you get me all to yourself for two weeks. Well that’s if you want me..”

[Eloise Eaton]

"A job?" Eloise half asked, a slight look of disgust crossing her face. It wasn't that Eloise didn't respect the notion of work. It wasn't that she thought it was a waste of time. It just wasn't something she really wanted to do. It wasn't something she really saw herself being good at, or enjoying to any extent. She'd much rather spend her time in her home-made design studio... prepping herself for her imagined future.

She also realized she'd probably have a hard time fighting her father on the matter, especially with the firm look he was giving her in that moment. "I'll... do my best," Eloise said with limited enthusiasm and a slight roll of her eyes. "But to be fair... my roommate is paying the utilities. I covered rent in advance... it was cheaper up front," Eloise explained... not that the fact would deter her father from insisting she work for her keep.

Eloise smiled when her dad told her he'd be in town for a couple weeks. It would be a much longer time that she had got to spend with him for a long while. "Je t'aime Papa," she said lovingly, her old french accent coming forth. "If I didn't want you I would have gotten rid of you a long, long time ago," the blonde teased, a genuine smile crossing her lips. She couldn't stay too mad at her did for missing graduation. Especially knowing she'd actually get to spend some time with him.

"So where is home now?" El asked - a question many may find strange. But with the amount of times Eloise had moved as a child, she wouldn't be surprised to hear her father had moved again, or was planning to move again. It was so common anymore, sometimes she missed his moves completely.

[Everett Eaton]

Everett sighed once he saw the look on his daughter’s face. For some reason he had thought Eloise had a lot more respect for money than that… “I’m not always going to be here for you… To give you money, and pay for things you want and need. I rather have you have the experience now, than wait till it’s too late. I don’t want life to be harder for you than it has to be.” Or rather harder for her after what he had put her through, moving around and everything, but he knew that things would have been much harder if he hadn’t done what he did.

“Covered rent in advance for money you did not earn yourself. This isn’t about you being able to pay for things on your own. This is about you getting the experience you need.” One of these days he hoped the girl would understand where he was coming from. “You can get an Etsy selling things, and making your own business for all I care. As long as you’re working by getting paid.” She didn’t have to get a job she didn’t like; she could get a job at a clothing store, helping people with their own fashion needs.

Everett smiled lovingly at her, he had greatly missed his daughter, and missed her growing up, although he had always been in her life, it always seemed like he missed out on watching her grow up. “I love you too” He said in English, mostly out of habit of speaking it, he rarely ever talked in French now a days. “Ah, well I’m glad to hear it. But even if you tried, I’m not easy to get rid of.”

“ah, same as it’s been since you first went to Hammel. Florida, it’s quite relaxing.. Though now I am thinking about moving a little closer to your home.” Being with El at that moment had made him realize how much had missed his little girl, and how much he was missing out from being so far away.