Destroyer of Time: Pyrokinesis

Chapter Two: Unwanted Changes

     "Hunter..."

Suddenly I heard a voice calling out my name. Well, it sounded like a whisper but with a loud pronunciation in it. When I looked back at my dad and saw his elbow swaying back and forth as he applied paint to whatever he was entranced with, I thought I just might be hallucinating. Not seriously hallucinating, but it could be just my mind playing tricks on me and making me believe that my name was being called. The problem was that I heard it again, not on the same whisper call though but on a louder and more authoritative tone.

     "Hunter!" the voice rang out.

I stopped and looked directly at the piercing blue eyes of my father. At his age, he still looked striking and even had his good looks still. I didn't know how he maintained the athlete-like body he had because his profession was a doctor/scientist, but if you encounter him, you will never think that he was one. I certainly had gotten teased by my classmates, telling me that we could be just brothers. It wouldn't bother me so much hearing them say that if it didn't usually was followed with them asking if they could have his number. We were the same age, for goodness sake, and they wanted to date my dad? No thanks. 

If you looked into his eyes, you would see the intelligence behind those scary and cold blue eyes. My mother used to say that my dad's eyes only needed clouds to be called heaven, but my dad would always reply that he didn't need them because his eyes had its star standing beside him. I shivered at the thought, and something tugged at my heart for just a second by remembering how well those old days were. I had green eyes like my mom, and sometimes I wondered if it reminded me of her to my dad, that was why he rarely looked at me. I mentally shrugged because I didn't care anymore anyway.

     "Are you deaf? I've been calling you for a few times now," he said, looking mad. Nothing new there.

     "My bad. Thinking about my school project, so I didn't hear you, " I lied dryly. That was shocking. It wasn't just the fact that he was talking to me, but he said that he called my name a few times. This must be the day where God's going to destroy the earth. Well, that is a terrifying thought.

     "What do you want?" I asked, keeping my voice neutral and disinterested. 

     "I just want to tell you that there are eggs and bacon in the oven. You probably missed it, " he replied. I thought that there was some tinge of shyness in his eyes, but it vanished quickly. Maybe I just imagined things because I would call my dad anything but shy.

I nodded at him and went back into the kitchen while thinking about these new things my dad was doing. I pulled open the oven and looked. Something black caught my attention, and when I finally realized what it was, I stared at it in horror. The eggs and bacon my dad was talking about looked closer to charcoal. It wasn't just toasted but burnt. Not once in my entire life, our housekeeper, Lucinda, burned something up. Maybe it was indeed the day of reckoning.

     "How does it taste? Sorry if it got a little over-fried. I'm still new into cooking," said the voice behind my back. My dad walked past me and sat down behind the counter. It took me a minute before the most shocking realization dawned on me. I almost spat out the bread that I was still chewing on.

     "You cooked this? That's impossible," I mumbled because this wasn't real. This was just still a dream. I swallowed the food in my mouth quickly before I ended up choking on it.

     "Hey, be nice! It's my first time cooking so you shouldn't use that tone. I'm not like the devil that learns to cook," he said. I noticed how he sounded relaxed for the first time in my life. His description of him could not get any better. This was the first time that I heard a smile in his voice too.

     "Dad, are you sick? Maybe you should lie down while I call a doctor?" I asked, adding a note of concern in my voice.

To my horror, he loudly laughed while he tapped my back. I stared at him suspiciously. "Since when did you become such a comedian, son? That's one of a hell of a joke, or did you forget that I'm a doctor too, so I will know if I'm sick or not?" he replied while still laughing.

     "I've always been funny, Dad. You just didn't notice it because you're too busy creating a life for yourself. I bet you don't even know a single damn thing about me, and I sure as hell won't be surprised if you don't even know that you have a son until now," It came out from my mouth before I could even stop it. Okay, I think I just ruined the chance for us to get along well because of my bitter feelings. I didn't feel regret, though, after saying those words because it was what I'd been trying to hold back inside me for a long time now. But I still didn't feel satisfied with saying it, and I know what I need to do.

     "I'm sor---" I started to say, but I got interrupted by my father's voice saying, "No, you're right, and you don't need to say sorry to me because I am sure as hell deserve what you just said. It's true that I've not been a good father figure to you, but I always know that I have a son. I'm the one who's sorry for neglecting you; I guess I got caught up in my own world that I never realized how the time passed so quickly. After your mother left, I felt like I failed and ended up turning into the one thing I know I'm good at, which is my work." He placed his hands on my shoulder and looked me straight into my eyes." I hope you can forgive me for abandoning you when you need me most, and I swear to you that from now on, I will always be there, okay?" he said somberly. I noticed how serious he was about the things he said. "If you're willing to give me a chance, then I will make it up to you. Please?" 

I nodded at him and stood up, then started heading through the front door.

     "Where are you going? You haven't even eaten anything yet. If you don't want the food, I could order or something, " my father called.

     "I'm going to Nick's house, and it's okay. I'm not hungry anyway," I said without stopping.

     "Wait. Are we okay?" 

     "Yeah! We are. We can talk more about this later when I get back. I just really gotta do something." 

Once I got out of the house, I leaned on the door and stared at the cloudless sky. I still had the feeling that something was stuck in my throat even after hearing my dad's word. The reason that I never replied anything he said was because I didn't believe him. I was sick and tired of the promises being made but kept getting broken. Like what my mom did to me, she made a promise, but she never fulfilled it. I didn't want to put my faith again to an unstable as a rocking boat promise made by him. After all, that boat might flip over and drown me; I didn't want to take the chance because I wasn't sure if I could survive. I kept walking then and realized something.

     "Where the hell is Linda?" I asked myself. Feeling a shiver went through my back. I wasn't too sure if I was going to be able to live eating charcoal food. This day confused me, and I was beginning to feel that there were many more things that were going to happen before the end of this crazy day. I sighed and continued walking.