Chapter Eight.
JC came home with a huge smile on his face, and the first thing he did was go seek out Alexa.
“Alexa?” he called through the house as he walked into the kitchen and opened up the fridge grabbing a bottle of water.
“Yeah Josh?” Alexa asked from behind him, JC smiled and turned to face her.
“Hey, how was your day with you mom?” JC asked, and Alexa shrugged.
“It went,” she said and JC felt his anger come back again.
“I’m sorry it was that bad,” JC said softly but Alexa smiled.
“It’s okay,” she said, “Um, Josh, can I ask you something?” JC looked at her, and his heart beat almost stopped. Oh shit, now she was going to ask him everything he wasn’t sure how to answer.
“Yeah sure,” he squeaked and sat down at the nearest stool to recompose himself.
“Well, I went to see my mom as you know, and well, um, she hasn’t changed,” Alexa said, JC let out a small sigh of relief. “And I was wondering, can I stay here?” JC looked at Alexa and smiled.
“What? Yeah sure, like I said, you can stay forever,” he said and he meant it more than she knew.
“Are you sure? I mean, what if you find your daughter?” Alexa asked and JC smile grew.
“I’m positive,” he said and took a deep breath in knowing he had to tell her, “And as for my daughter… I’ve already found her.”
“Oh,” Alexa said a bit disappointed. JC noticed this and took her hand in his holding it tightly.
“Alexa, look at me,” he said and Alexa slightly raised her eyes.
“So I guess, I should go then,” Alexa said and JC shook his head vigorously.
“That’s just it Alexa, you shouldn’t go,” JC said and Alexa looked at him curiously.
“What do you mean?” she said, and JC smiled.
“You can’t go,” he said softly, “Not when we’ve just found each other.”
Alexa was very confused at JC’s confession, and looked at him.
“What do you mean Josh?” she asked, and JC smiled his famous smile.
“Come I want to show you something,” he said and took her hand and lead her into the living room. “Sit.” She nodded and did as he asked, as he pulled a photo album from one of the book shelves and sat down next to her.
“What is it?” she asked, a little bit afraid, but JC seemed to calm her down. He smiled and looked at her with his kind blue-grey eyes.
“Alexa, I want to show you pictures of my daughter,” he said and Alexa nodded nervously.
“Um, okay,” she said unsure of where this was heading. JC smiled and set the album between the two of them. He opened up the first page, and when he did so Alexa’s heart stopped. “Oh my God.”
“I know, that’s what I said,” JC answered softly, “Alexa, do you know who that is?”
“It’s me,” she barely whispered, and JC nodded. “And you.”
JC and Alexa spent the next few hours just sitting in each others presence and soaking it up. They had missed out on ten years of this, and they couldn’t have wanted more. They took a few moments to put the pieces together, and once they did it all seemed so strange that they hadn’t known.
JC told Alexa the truth about why he had left her, he hadn’t wanted to. He explained that he’d been granted custody of Alexa and when he had gone to get her, Laney had taken her and disappeared. He also told her how over the years, he had spent many nights and days searching, praying that he’d find her.
On the other hand, Alexa told JC everything that had happened in her own life. She said that Laney had tried to make Alexa believe that JC was an evil man. Laney had never told Alexa the truth about her father, in fear that Alexa would find him and leave her.
In the end now here they sat, as father and daughter watching each other, and telling each other stories about the past ten years. A stranger would have told you, that if you walked by the house that day and looked in you would have seen a father and daughter sitting side by side, but what he wouldn’t have told you is what was really there.
There sitting next to one another was a father, who had finally found the child he had once lost and a daughter who finally found her father whom she thought didn’t want her. And they both had those same eyes, the eyes that the entire world loves, those perfect blue-grey orbs that sparkled when they smiled. The Chasez smile.
Story Tags: daddyjc
