Resurrection
The morning light struck his eyes from the window. He awoke, dazed and blinded. He shifted in bed to get out of the light but was hampered by an unfamiliar weight. Scooting out of the light, he looked down. He was naked, which was odd. A halo of blond hair covered his chest. He had slept alone for so long that this was unbelievable. Memories threatened to surface but he could not quite grasp them. Her breath, for he was sure it was a woman, tickled his chest hairs as she breathed, sleeping soundly. Curious as to her identity, he gently brushed her hair back from her face. His touch caused her to stir. She turned slowly to look up at him. Her blue eyes and bright smile caused all the memories from the previous day to suddenly return.
"Good morning, Daddy."
*****
"All right, smile you goof balls."
The three girls stood for the camera as William snapped a picture. His youngest daughter, Natalie, and her two friends, Bailey and Michelle, were making goofy poses in their graduation gowns. The end of their last year in school was enhanced by their having just turned eighteen two months ago. They were happy to be free for the summer and excited for the future.
"Come here, Mr. B," shouted Michelle, "I'll get a picture of you and Nat." Their last name was Buchannan but the other two girls always called him Mr. B.
"Oh no. I take pictures, I'm not in them." He demurred.
"Come on. It's not every day your last child graduates from high school." Michelle snatched the camera from his hands. "Go over there and stand with her. I promise to take a good one."
Having been overcome, after putting up a token resistance, William went and stood with Natalie. Natalie, of course, fussed with his hair and tie. He sighed and squirmed as she did it.
"Cheer up. I want this picture to be special." Natalie's golden hair sparkled in the June sun but her smile shined more like her own star. She had inherited his family's mostly Scandinavian looks. Standing a few inches over five feet tall, she was every bit as graceful as any super model.
"Besides, it's not every day that I get to see you in a suit. You look so handsome." She turned, hugged her father's arm, and smiled for the camera.
William knew she was just saying that because he was her father, but it lifted his spirits anyway. His other daughter, Katherine, was hell on wheels, having inherited most of her mother's genes. As soon as she was out of school and eighteen, she was out the door. Except for occasional calls, mostly to talk to Natalie, he barely had any contact with her. At last contact, she was living somewhere in Texas. It still hurt the way she left so suddenly.
"I wish Katherine could have come." Natalie dropped her head a little, pretending to fix her father's lapels.
"I'm sure she would have come if she could." He knew it as a lie as soon as it came out. Katherine avoided her father as much as possible. Though he had no hand in it, she still blamed him for her mother's death.
"I wish your mother had stuck around for this occasion as well." Natalie could only nod, a single tear squeezed from her eye. She hugged her father tightly, resisting the urge to cry. William wrapped his arms around her. The memories once again, came to him unbidden.
*****
6 years ago.
William stood in the cemetery, standing next to his two special girls. Rarely did he cry but his body betrayed him today. Surrounded by family and friends, he felt so alone. His wife, after years of fighting, had finally succumbed to her demons.
He had come home from work that morning without thinking anything was different. He had walked into the bathroom adjoining his bedroom, removed his contacts, and crawled into bed. He had gotten off work around 5 am and knew he was to get up in a few hours again to take her to work. It seemed like her alarm went off as soon as his head hit the pillow.
He stretched, groaned, and started to get dress. He put on his spare glasses, the contacts being only for work. He came out of the bathroom, still hearing her alarm going off. He walked over and turned it off. He shook her gently, saying her name.
No response.
He shook her again, speaking a little louder.
Still nothing. He noticed then that she wasn't breathing.
He screamed. He shook her harder, yelling her name. He ran out off the room and grabbed the phone. He dialed 911 as he ran back in. Flipping on the lights, he told the operator his address and the situation. He rolled her onto her back, yelling at his wife, yelling at the operator, yelling in general.
Of course the noise awoke his children. They came running into the room to see their father trying to perform CPR on their mother. The girls screamed and began crying; asking what was going on, looking for comfort from a father who could not provide it.
He yelled at them, frustrated and panicked. He told them to go unlock the front door, turn on the outside light. The youngest obeyed while the eldest began crying harder. He told her it would be all right with little conviction. He knew she was probably already gone by the time he had gotten home, but what else could he do? She was his first love and he could not give up, even though she had.
The paramedics arrived, pushing him off to the side. He stood there, dumbfounded and disbelieving. The touch of his youngest's hand shocked him out of his state. She was scared and confused, not knowing why mommy wouldn't wake up. He knelt down and hugged her. He carried her out to the living room to join her sister while the paramedics worked.
They transferred her to a hospital but declared her dead enroute. The police asked him some questions. Since she died mysteriously, they said, there would have to be an investigation and autopsy. He understood. The husband was always the primary suspect.
Later, it had been declared a suicide. She had overdosed on her medication. The pills finally silenced the demons in the end.
Still, he stood, reliving those moments over and over again. A small hand clasped his. He looked over at Natalie, her eyes puffy and red. She smiled at her daddy and for the briefest of moments, the pain subsided. He squeezed her hand and smiled back.
Natalie clung to her father the rest of the day, going where he did and never letting go.
*****
"Daddy?" Her voice came to him down a tunnel. He looked into the face of his grown daughter. It took him a moment to recognize that this beautiful woman standing so near him was his daughter.
"Huh? What honey?"
"Are you okay?" She clasped his hand. The way she always did when he 'went away'.
"Yeah, honey, I'm fine." He forced a smile. "Just admiring the prettiest girl here." Her bright smile flashed again.
