Want you to stay in a subtle way Who: Eva and Bradley Where: Owl's Nest When: Early evening
Praising everything that her father mentioned that he worked at the Owl's Nest and luckily it was pretty easy to find in her built in GPS unit, Eva finally found a parking place and hopped out of the car. She clutched her bag to her as she walked inside. Waving the hostess away, she walked over to the bar, her knees shaking with nervousness. It wasn't everyday that she met her father after nearly twenty years apart.
Her knees were also shaking for a very different reason. She was tired, exhausted really. It was a weird day, very bittersweet. Here she was about to meet her dad for the first time in a long time and then she has to drop such a bombshell on him. It wasn't fair, but she had to do it.
Sinking onto the bar stool, Eva rubbed her temples for a minute before asking the bartender to get Bradley from the kitchen. She straightened up in her seat and smoothed her skirt. One hand ran through her hair as a makeshift comb, making sure it was presentable. When she saw him peek out of the kitchen, a warm smile came to her face and she waved to him. "Hi daddy..."
Monday's were relatively slow in the kitchen, and Bradley needed the slow pace, especially after the conversation he had with Linnea's husband. That wasn't enough to stop him from worrying about her and Kajsa. Tuesday couldn't come any faster, for then he would be able to see her and make sure all was well. Bradley's mind was filled with distractions that it was actually interfering with his work to some extent. The other cooks definitely caught on, though he waved them off when they asked if he needed a break at all. It wasn't until the bartender poked their head into the kitchen and said someone was looking for him that he was able to rip himself away from his work. Apparently it was a young woman outside at the bar who requested him.
"Looks like you're the popular one around here, Brad," one of the line cooks joked with him. First Linnea, then Jokull, now... who was this again? The bartender didn't specify and only pointed in the direction of the young girl. He had never seen her before, for obvious reasons, though was curious to see what it was she wanted. Once he approached her, she managed to beat him to the introductions, and her words made Bradley stop in his tracks. Daddy? He even blinked and looked over his shoulder to see if she was talking to someone behind him, but no, her eyes were locked onto him, so she had to be referring to him.
Bradley wasn't sure how to take the entire scenario. He knew he was a father, though he hadn't seen his daughter since she was a baby, and Bridget did a damn good job at keeping Eva away from him. For all he knew, she could have been dead or a famous celebrity and Bradley would have never known. Then it hit him that perhaps this woman before him was Eva. Could it be? Either that or it was some sick joke and Bradley was not going to be happy about it. Still, he didn't like jumping to conclusions, so instead he swallowed hard, tried to calm his pounding heart, and replied with a puzzled, "...I'm... sorry?"
Yeah, so maybe walking in and just saying 'Hi Daddy' wasn't quite the best approach. Could be quite a shock for a guy to see his daughter for the first time after so many years. "I'm Eva," she said, still smiling at him. If he was looking closely he could see the lines of tiredness around her eyes and mouth, not only giving away her long journey but her physical tiredness.
But wow, seeing her dad for the first time that she really remembered, was just...wow. His dark hair was back in a ponytail, which she found kinda really cool. Her dad had hair long enough for a ponytail! How awesome was that? He wasn't particularly tall, but had an athletic build. She was pleased to see that her dark skin came from him, as well as her dark hair and eyes. Finally she could put a face to the name of daddy. Maybe it was too soon to call him that? One had to earn such a title she supposed.
He continued to stand there, his eyes only widening when she uttered her name, the same name that was tattooed over his heart. At first he thought this was just a joke, but it couldn't be if her name was Eva, and she was such a spitting image of himself. The eyes, the hair, and even her skin. He saw little of Bridget in her, maybe a bit in her voice, but that was it. This was by far his daughter. His daughter that he hadn't seen in ages. And she was standing right there in front of him. It didn't get any more real than this.
"...Eva?" He finally spoke up, his voice shaking a bit as he slowly closed the distance between the two. "Is it really you?" A scoff escaped him along with a slight smile while he shook his head. "No, you're suppose to be in Florida and... not here." For so many years he could only dream of seeing his daughter, but finally seeing her felt surreal. He extend his arms for a second, wanting to pull her into a hug, but immediately pulled his arms back, not wanting to frighten her with a smothering embrace. Though he couldn't take his eyes off of her, which were starting to water up with tears.
Awww, her dad was crying! That solidified everything that Eva had suspected her entire life: that he wanted to be with her, to see her, and was kept from her, probably by her mother. Well, she was now old enough to make her own damn decisions and she wanted to see her dad! "It really is me." She saw him raise his arms, then drop them and she didn't hesitate. She slid off her barstool and walked to him, wrapping her arms around his waist. She closed her eyes and breathed him in. He smelled like herbs and whatever he was cooking back in the kitchen.
Not wanting to let go anytime soon, she mumbled against his chest, "I decided to come see you. Mom, of course, isn't happy about it, but I don't care. I want to get to know you." Seeing as how they were just meeting again after all these years, she wasn't going to drop the cancer bomb on him. Soon for sure, but not now.
The second Eva hugged him, Bradley's arms were back up to embrace his daughter tightly. It was really Eva. His sweet, little Eva. The only thing that seemed to matter in life. He was willing to do anything for her, no matter what, and now she was finally here. He could only imagine Bridget flipping shit over this, but it didn't matter. If this was Eva's idea, then there was nothing any could do about it. He pulled away enough to look down at her and spoke up, "I've been dreaming of this day for... forever, I suppose. Just surreal right now." Bradley turned his head to flick away a couple tears. "Come on, let's go to the back room. Have some more privacy that way." He gave Eva a tight squeeze before beckoning to her to follow him through the kitchen and to one of the offices in the back. As happy as he was to finally see his daughter, he didn't want the whole restaurant to see him breakdown. It was still hard to process the fact that she was really there. This was going to get some getting used to.
Eva followed him to the back room, feeling warm all over from the great reception from her dad. She'd been a little nervous about his reaction to seeing her again. As he shut the door to the back room, she felt the need to clear the air a bit. "I want you to know that I've always wanted you in my life. Mom never allowed it and after a while, I finally stopped asking. It wasn't that I stopped thinking of you, but I was tired of getting shot down. I'd get so hopeful and then she wouldn't let me and it would be such a disappointment." Feeling a little light headed and weak with all the excitement going on, Eva clutched at a chair and walked around it to sink down in it. She cursed herself for appearing so weak, she didn't want to tell her dad, not yet.
Being able to hear those words from Eva made Bradley's heart skip a beat. It was great to know that his daughter wanted him in her life, for Bradley yearned for so many years to be in her life. Bridget did a damn good job at keeping him away, but now she wasn't there to stop them from bonding. "I've tried so hard to be there for you, but the best I could do was send money. Your mother never really let me..." His words trailed off as his body started to shake and within seconds he sat down in a nearby chair and hung his head low, clinging onto it tightly. It was hard to resist the tears that were coming right now. He was just overjoyed to finally have his little Eva with him. After a moment he brought his head back up, clearing his eyes and flicking away strands of loose hair from his face. "My apologies, I'm just so happy to finally see you. I can't tell you how much this means to me. Hopefully you're here to stay for a while. Wait, do you even have a place to stay?" Leave it to a master earth elemental to be a father and worry like it was no one's business.
Eva was so touched by his tears and emotion that she couldn't help but tear up herself. Her dad seemed to be such a gentle soul, just like she'd always wished for. She smiled gently at him when he lifted his head to apologize. "Don't be sorry! I'm equally as happy to see you." She blinked at his next question, wondering if he was somehow telepathic too. "I, um, I actually don't have anywhere to stay." She looked down at her hands, playing with her ring. And she wanted to tell him that she was going to be here for a while - but well, with things the way they were, she wasn't sure exactly how long she was going to have. Hopefully a really long time and the IL-2 treatments would work, but in the event that they didn't, she didn't want to promise her dad something that she couldn't deliver.
Oh no, Bradley was far from telepathic, unless the whole 'fathers always know' counted. He couldn't help but worry about his daughter, so it was only natural for him to worry about her. And now that she dropped the fact she had no where to stay, Bradley's worry-o-meter just skyrocketed. "You do now. You can come stay at my cottage. It's out by the farmer's market." Bradley wasn't even sure if he had a spare bedroom available, but he was willing to give up his bedroom for a while and sleep on the couch so Eva could have it. He made a mental note to clear out that office he never used to make it into a room fit for his daughter.
With that note made, he focused on some of the various questions he had for Eva, and started with the first and foremost important one. "How have you been? You're... twenty-one now, right? You doing anything exciting?" How strange that it was the first time he was able to ask her that. All those years had gone by and not once was he aware of what she was doing. At the very least she had to be talented with something. Bradley was fae-blooded and could only imagine that his daughter inherited that as well.
Shocked that he would offer, she gaped at him for a second before smiling hesitantly. "Are you sure? I don't want to impose. I can stay in a hotel until I find somewhere to live." One good thing about being a purse designer was that she was making pretty decent money, so she could support herself. However, it would be wonderful to live with her father and get to know him. "I have a dog...my familiar...is that going to be a problem? She's an indoor dog and is housebroken, so she's a good dog." That would be a deal breaker if her dad didn't want Olivia with them.
His daughter? Imposing? That was definitely a blip that never reached the radar, because Eva was never going to be imposing for Bradley. "No no no, I insist. You are more than welcomed to live with your old dad. It's not trouble at all." And then she dropped something even bigger into his lap - she had a familiar. So that meant she was... "A familiar? You're... an elemental?" Bridget must have died from a stroke if she found out. "Oh god... I'm sorry, no, that's completely fine, I'm just... trying to overcome my shock." What exactly was she? Was she an earth elemental like him? It would make sense, especially with how she was dressed. Elementals tended to gravitate towards certain colors and materials, that was for sure. "As long as your familiar doesn't mind mine, then everything should be fine." Bradley wasn't sure how poor Bean would like a big ol' dog sharing his home, but the bunny would live.
Oh oops. She should have eased him into that one first. Way to make a first impression, Eva! "Sorry about that...yeah, I'm an earth elemental. A low level one. And yeah, mom had a cow. She didn't kick me out...I chose to leave on my own, but yeah, things were uncomfortable to say the least." She peered at her father. "Olivia's a really sweet dog...she's in the car if you want me to go get her." Then she brightened at the mention of his familiar. "What kind do you have? What's it's name?" They just had to get along. Eva would be sure to have a talk with Olivia to make sure she knew that Bradley's familiar was off limits. They were going to be the perfect houseguests.
Bradley sort of stopped listening after she said she was an earth elemental. Oh my god, she picked it up, too! And right as Eva finished talking, Bradley was there by her side to pull her into another tight hug. Oh yeah, he was completely thrilled that his daughter shared the same affinity that he had with earth. "This is... wow, this is perfect," he pulled away gently to look down at Eva. "Looks like you've picked up more than just my looks. You should know that your father here is a master earth elemental and now I can't wait to show you the garden back at my cottage." The garden itself was 75% of the land he owned there and he took great pride in it. Hell, what earth elemental wouldn't? "Oh, and my familiar. His name is Bean. He's a baby lopped ear bunny. Fits right in my palm... barely... He's adorable, I'm sure you'll like him, and I know he'll love you." Shit, Bean loved everyone, that wasn't hard.
Eva gasped, "Oh wow, you're a master? That's so awesomely cool, dad!" She squeezed him back, so glad that she'd decided to come find him. Now she was sure it had been the right thing to do. Hopefully, if her health held out, she'd be able to learn from him and advance in her levels. That would be so awesome! Eva squeed as he told her about his familiar. "Oh my God, he sounds so cute! I can't wait to meet him. Can you we go now? I want to see your gardens and meet your bunny!" She had all her stuff in the car, hadn't even really made it to a hotel, so she was ready to move on in as long as he wasn't rethinking his offer.
Go now? Well, Bradley was definitely not going to object to that, especially when it was his daughter asking him. "Of course we can go now. Bean will probably be delight to have me home early and meet you. Just... give me a second, alright? I need to let the rest of the kitchen know I'm leaving." Josiah was probably going to be ripshit, but he would explain later. Pulling Eva into another hug and kissing the top of her head, he looked down at her with a smile. "If you want to wait on out by the bar, I'll be there in a second. Promise." And with that he walked on over to the door and cracked it open for them to head on out, motioning for Eva to go first.
"Sure, I'll wait by the bar." Eva hauled herself out of the chair and made her way over to the bar. She was feeling lighter than she had in a long time...she'd found her dad! She was overjoyed at how they seemed to get along and she couldn't wait to meet Bean and see his house and gardens.