Mercy

Round 13: Summer 2020


Rianna Midlock is 50, Anthony is 46, Emily is 12, Sara is 11 and Jesse is 7.
(Eve is 19.)

Narrated by Anthony Midlock.

I've been working all summer so Rianna spends the days with the kids. We can't afford to travel anywhere so she usually takes them to the park. Emily's all grown-up now, at least that's what she thinks, and she says she's too old to play in the park but she goes there anyway.

Jesse enjoys fishing a lot. One day he actually caught a fish and Rianna cooked it for dinner. Who would've guessed that our 7-year-old son would bring food to the table?!

They also go to the music and dance club. The kids love to play all the different instruments. All our kids can play the piano since Jackie has taught them all. Emily has been playing the longest so naturally she's also the most talented one.

Sara is really into dance. She's been bugging us about getting her on ballet lessons and we finally gave in. She says she wants to become a primaballerina one day.

I've been pretty absent - even when I'm at home. About three weeks ago I was at work when desk sergeant Tom Patterson came to my office and said there was a young woman who wanted to see me.

She introduced herself as Eve. She said that she was a sophomore at Brixton University and had moved there earlier this year after her mother died. She was looking for her father who supposedly lives nearby.

I guess I should've seen it coming but it still came as a surprise to me.

"Were you in a relationship with Shanna Waters in 2000?" she asked. Then she showed me a picture of her mother and it was my ex-girlfriend Shanna. I dated her very briefly right before I met Rianna. Shanna moved to another city and I never heard from her again.

Eve told me that her mother never talked about her father until she became terminally ill with cancer. "She told me that my last name, Midlock, came from my father and that he lived in Wellington. I thought I'd give it a shot."

Needless to say that I was shocked. Could this young woman be my daughter?!

We agreed to get a DNA test just to make sure but I already had a feeling that it wasn't necessary. The fact that Shanna had given her my last name spoke for itself. Eve asked about my family and I told her that I had 3 children and that my wife was the principal of the local elementary school.

"I'm not going to tell them yet" I said. She nodded and said that was probably the best. No need to worry them if she didn't turn out to be my daughter after all.

"I don't want anything from you" she said. "I just want to know the truth."

***

I pulled some strings and got the test results back quite quickly. There was no doubt about it, Eve was my daughter.

I told Rianna that I had something important to tell her when I came home from work. I tried to soften the blow but I could tell she was still quite shocked. She asked if I was sure and I told her about the DNA tests. I think she was upset that I hadn't told her earlier.

"I was going to tell you anyway but not until I knew what to tell" I said.

Rianna got up and turned her back to me. She just stood there for a moment until I went and wrapped my arms around her.

"I want to meet her" she said. Then she asked about Eve's mother and I told her about our brief relationship and that she had passed away last year.

"We broke up before you and I had even met and I never heard from her again. I had no idea she got pregnant."

She turned to face me with tears in her eyes.

"I don't know what to say... I feel sorry for the girl, having to go through so much grief at such a young age." I had worried that Rianna would hate Eve - or me - but I guess the fact that I hadn't cheated on her was all she needed to know.

We decided not to tell the kids yet. We would meet Eve for a lunch at some restaurant - a neutral ground - and just go from there.

I was a nervous wreck when we finally went out to meet Eve. But it all went really well from the beginning. It's not like we're a big happy family now but it's a start. I feel like I've missed a lot and I want to get to know my daughter much better.

Eve seems genuinely nice. Rianna was very impressed when she heard that she's paying her way through college. And the fact that she studies modern dance is going to make her a huge hit if she meets Sara.

"I thought you might hate me" Eve said to Rianna. That was exactly what I had thought too.

"Why would I? What happened between your mother and Anthony... that happened before he met me. I'm not going to lie and say I wasn't shocked but I think we all need some time to get used to this new situation" Rianna said and took Eve's hand. "I would like you to be part of our family."

Rianna turned to me when we got home and said that we should tell the kids about Eve. I guess I looked worried because she took my hands and said that everything's going to be fine.

We told the kids the next day. We explained to them that daddy had another girl who was older than them and daddy had never known about her until a few weeks ago. I think they took it pretty well. They were full of questions of course but they all seemed pretty excited about getting a big sister.

We told them that Eve studied dance at Brixton University.

"Hey, maybe she can teach you" Emily said to Sara.

It feels like our lives has been turned upside down but I think in the end everything will turn out alright.

Notes:

• Title reference: Mercy by Duffy.
• Ha! I tweeted that I would reveal something very interesting in this update. Eve is originally a social group townie who just happened to have the same last name with Anthony. At first I thought I'd make her his sister but then I ended up having a much more interesting idea. So I aged her down and made her Anthony's daughter. Eve is currently a playable NPC but I'll make her a real playable if I should feel like it later.
• I know this round has been going on forever, mostly due to the numerous problems I've had with my computer. Things are looking up (less crashes, yay!) so I hope to wrap this round up soon and finally enter round 14.