He then turned and looked at his son who was now sitting on the coach, sketching pictures on a white paper of his art book. Coincidently, this is when their eyes met. Looking into his father's eyes, the little boy lit his face with a calm smile.
Bob Lee, slightly navigating his own thoughts, still holding his gaze on his son Bimbo, he then turned to his mom and Ishtar;
"I think I need a few hours sitting down on a church bench, repenting."
His words didn't sound believable to his mother. The grown-up woman chuckled with curiosity.
"You! Church....! Tell me. Since when did you start?"
His voice filled with commitment, he turned eyes at Bimbo as he replied:
"My son needs a new me. I need a priest to cleanse my mind off all the impurities... to set my body free."
Then Bimbo, sitting on the cream coloured coach, called him with a polite request.
"Daddy. Can you take me to the park?"
Bob Lee's face glowed with happiness. Him and his son have not met from the day he was born. Eyes at eachother, the little boy added:
"Every Sunday my friends have their dads playing in the park with them."
As a father who has not been in his son's life ever since he was born, it was of great pleasure that his son asked him for a favor. With no hesitation, Bob Lee responded extremely happy:
"Of course son! Just tell me when and it's done."
As his mother and Ishtar witnessed with glowing eyes, he added:
"Come here...!"
With high spirit, Bimbo hurried in his father's open arms. With high spirit too, Bob Lee lifted his son up, on the left side of his chest.
"Tell me. Besides taking you to the park, what else would you wish to do with daddy?"
Excitedly, the little boy grinned and answered boldly.
"Drawing and shading pictures with you, I think that will be beautiful too!"
"Wow!"
Bimbo went ahead to say in details:
"I want to draw the park with all my friends and their fathers in it!"
Displayining an amazed smile, Bob Lee gave the little boy an assurance.
"Wow! I see what you've been missing son. So, now that dad is here, we're going to do all that together. We gonna draw everything in this entire world."
Over joyed in his father's chest, Bimbo asked:
"Are you gonna take me to the zoo and we draw all the animals there...?"
Joyfully, Bob Lee answered:
"No doubt. We gonna draw the lion king, zebras, the long neck giraffes and the big Buffalos."
"And the birds flying up in the sky?"
"All of those. I assure you."
"How about the fish in the oceans?"
Bob Lee replied:
"Am gonna hire a ship and a submarine just to go down the ocean with you. Our first fish to shade in the book will be the great whale and the dolphins."
"Wow...!"
Little Bimbo was seeing everything in vivid images on his mind. He was so excited. But then, it was high time for Bob Lee to put him down. Besides the cheerful face, his mind carried a heavy burden that he was hiding. After the little boy put his feet on the floor, as a caring father, he asked him to stay away from any person his mom didn't introduce him to.
"Remember, when we get to the amusement park tomorrow, am the only father you should keep close to. Not your friends' fathers, okay?"
Aware of the in coming danger that could target the boy in the first place, he had to caution him as one of the ways to keep him safe. Bimbo nodded with a smile on his cheeks. He then shined his eyes bright and wide.
"You mean tomorrow is Sunday?!"
"Sure! Better prepare yourself for fun."
Excited and overwhelmed by joy, he ran to meet his mother Ishtar.
"Mom, dad just said tomorrow is a Sunday! Can you believe my friends won't mock me anymore for not having a father!"
With a smile of approval, Ishtar shrugged:
"Then go and have fun my boy!"
As a mother, seeing her son so happy like this, she understood how important it was to keep a father in a child's life. As for Bimbo's grandmother, the calm smile she was wearing without taking her eyes off the little boy proved how over joyed her soul was. For the first time, everyone in the house held a smile of joy, coming from deep within.
After all, the little boy's happiness was effective in calming their fears.
Bob Lee and Ishtar gazed in eachother's eyes for a moment. And before he turned to face the exit so he could step out of that glass door, from the deepest part of his soul he expressed his sincere gratitude for the fact that she accepted to welcome him at her home and gave him a chance to bond freely with his child, putting all the moments of torment he took her through in the past, aside.
"Thank you Ishtar."
He added:
"....if you could excuse me, I got to go to church now."
.....
A moment later, a wide door opens and Bob Lee steps inside. He moves his eyes around, only to see black beauties, chocolate brown and white skin ladies, some wearing tight jeans, and others putting on tight mini dresses accompanied with high heels _ everyone enjoying themselves around men with glasses and bottles. As he walks his way in, ahead is a stage packed with full-bodied females, dancing and striping, entertaining customers to get paid. Bob Lee finds himself a comfortable seat by the bar counter inside this busy bar. This time round, he chooses to pumper himself with a bottle of brandy which serves as his priest in this trying time.
After all, he had to confront his torments.
By himself on the bar counter, annoyed, quarrelling at himself, he opened the bottle and quater filled the whisky glass infront of him.
"So crazy...!"
He lifted the glass and poured one heavy sip down his throat, emptying the glass. Never in his life had he ever been so frustrated, perturbed and horribly anxious like he was frowning his face. He banged the glass back down on the counter.
"How the hell did I end up in this mess? Married her out of obsession, damn! I was only swept off my feet by her charms: those innocent looking eyes and a magnetic smile, the beauty and good sex! Dammit! I was so blinded. Had I known that I was messing up my whole life.... Nadia Browne never even loved me in the first place!"
Looking over the whisky glass in his hand, Bob Lee added:
"Her pregnancy that I took full responsibility for with all my heart... it turned out the child wasn't mine."
He then chuckled, laughing indifferent at himself and added:
"How foolish I am _ finding out when the child is one and a half years already. I never even got guts to confront her about it!"
He sucked his teeth with shame.
"Psk."
Sighing regretful, Bob Lee added:
"How I wish I never abandoned Ishtar. How I wish I listened to my mother... Nadia Browne made me loose a life my father struggled so much to give me. That damn bitch is a green snake in green grass. Nothing to be proud of for the past five years that I have spent with her except regular torments."
In exasperation, Bob Lee bent his head down with both arms leaning against the bar counter. He then raised his eyes and looked at the happy faces of fellow men around.
He took a deep breathe and added:
"What is the use for me to blame Nadia Browne anyway? It was my poor choices that led me into this mess I'm into."
Confused, all alone at the bar counter, watching happy faces of guys and beautiful ladies dancing to the music that played so loud while they enjoyed themselves, he picked up a bottle and half-filled his glass with a drink again. And before he took a sip, he paused and got into his thought for a second.
"Why must I even care if my mother gets to know about this secret I've hid from her for years? The child she believes is her granddaughter is not and with time she will get to know anyway. I've kept hundred hurts and anxiety to myself for so long too! It's high time I free my mind off all the bullshit."
Bravely in his mind:
"Nadia Browne, you must know that I know that the little girl she gave birth to belongs to Marlon _ the man you introduced to me as a business partner. And not mine! I need to confront you and bust your ears with the whole reality soon before my mother meet you! The journey of our relationship is over!"
Bob Lee pulled out his phone from the pocket."