A year later, I was sending off college applications and filling out scholarship forms. I had to write an essay for one of them about the person who had most impacted my life. The irony of it is, I made it a loving tribute to my father and was awarded the whole $15, 000 scholarship. He cried when he read it, and put it in a frame to set on his desk at work. He had no idea that essay would be the greatest catalyst for my innocence in the events to come.
For my last assignment in the drama class I was taking, I had to write a screenplay. I told my father about the assignment and asked him to help me. What he didn�t know is that I had written two, one of which would be completely destroyed.
�Sure I�ll help, Sweetie. What can I do?�
�Well, Daddy, I�m having trouble with one of the scenes. Something just isn�t right, but I can�t put my finger on it.� As I said that, I reached nonchalantly into the pocket of my jacket and rested my finger on the play button of the tape recorder. �I thought maybe if I could hear it read aloud I would be able to tell what�s missing.�
�Ok, no problem�, he said with a smile, �there was a time I was quite the thespian myself.�
�Oh good, then you�ll be able to make it sound convincing.� With that, I handed him the script and pointed to the scene I was referring. �Why don�t you get comfortable with the lines and I�ll come back in a little while? Oh, and Dad, it has to be done perfectly. I�m going to record it so I can listen to it and work out how to make it sound natural. Make sure you follow the prompts, voice inflections...just all that kinda stuff, ok?�
�Sure thing, Kiddo. I�m happy to help. Give me twenty minutes or so to look this over.� He replied blissfully ignorant that the suicide scene he was going to read aloud for me and my tape recorder was to be his last. �Poor Daddy� I thought to myself as I went to make his last meal complete with enough drugs for his overdose. My mouth twisted in a wry smile. Soon I would leave this life behind in favor of a new one. All old ghosts were about to be vindicated and finally laid to rest.
End