Ethan sits stiffly, his hands folded in his lap, eyes drawn to the faded images on the table. Across from him, Father shifts uneasily, the weight of years pressing down on his slouched shoulders. The air between them hums with anticipation, heavy with unspoken words.
"I wasn't sure you’d come," he begins, voice trembling as if unused to honesty. Ethan glances up, uncertainty flickering in his gaze.
Father leans forward, fingers tracing the edge of a letter. His eyes are distant, searching the past for meaning. "I spent most of my life wandering, Ethan. No plan, no purpose—just one decision after another, each one leading me further from where I thought I should be," he confesses. Ethan's lips part, but the words catch, drowned by the storm swelling inside him.
Father closes his eyes, the lines on his face deepening. "I chased after things I thought would matter—a new job, another city, a different life. But every choice felt like wandering through fog. I wish I'd found clarity sooner. I wish I'd had a map," he says, voice cracking with regret. Ethan watches, his own memories flickering in the lamplight.
Father's hands tremble as he reaches for a photograph of a younger Ethan. "I wasn't there for you when you needed me, and I can't change that. All I can do is tell you the truth. I wanted so badly to be a good father, but I was lost, Ethan. I didn't know how to find my way back," he admits, tears glistening in his eyes. Ethan swallows hard, his own heart aching with old wounds.
Ethan finally speaks, his voice soft but resolute. "Maybe there was no map for you, but you’re giving me something now—a chance to understand. We can't rewrite the past, Dad, but maybe we can find a way forward, together," he says, reaching across the table. Father's eyes shine with gratitude, the distance between them shrinking.
Both Ethan and Father sit in companionable silence, the wounds of the past acknowledged but no longer defining them. "Maybe you’ll find your own map, Ethan. Maybe you’ll draw it as you go," Father whispers, hope trembling in his voice. Ethan nods, a tentative smile forming as sunlight washes over them, illuminating the possibility of forgiveness and new beginnings.
