I'M THE PLAYER

"I love you all."

Hi guys.

Thanks for reading.
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"You're not, you're skinnier now and you're in pain. I'm proud of you." Dad said as he hugged me and kissed my forehead.

"Thanks dad." I said.

"You're a strong woman, keep that up, I love you. Sorry, I couldn't show it before." Dad said sweetly.

"I'm proud of you too, Dad. You just changed. My childhood was awesome because of you. I love you." I chirped.

"Now how do I become a 'dad' to Bertin?" Dad asked.

"He loves basketball, he's now in the park playing." I answered.

"I know that." Dad said.

"Good, you can wear the Lebron James Jersey, he bought for you last year and go play with him in the park." I suggested.

"Good idea, I'm going now. Stay safe, Ash." Dad said enthusiastically.

"Remember, you're going there not for parenting but for bonding. Don't scold him, he's with his friends. If something is not right, just say you won't participate in it and scold him when you get back home." I instructed as I got up slowly.

"Got it. Thanks, dear." Dad said.

After a few minutes, he left and I got back to sketching. Alvin called me every hour, I think he liked me too since he cared so much.

...

"Son, when you grow up, you can do anything you want with your life as long as it's worth it. You just have to be willing to work hard." Dad said to Bertin as they entered the house and Mom and Gisele stared in shock.

"Got it, Dad." Bertin said.

"You're only 12 now, you'll understand more when you get older. When you get older, you'll wish you were 12 again." Dad said as he laughed with Bertin.

"Got it, sir." Bertin said sarcastically as they both laughed.

"I'm going to take a shower." Dad said and went upstairs.

"Can you guys believe it?, Dad actually like Lebron James and he's into basketball, the most exciting part is he's a cool dad." Bertin said enthusiastically.

"Dad doesn't like sports anymore." Gisele said.

"Yes, he just put it away when you were born, Bertin. Things got tough. His favorite is basketball." Mom said.

"I got the basketball skills from my dad." Bertin said happily.

"The question here is what made him return to that hobby?" Mom asked.

"I did. Finally, he noticed his mistakes and now he can change." I said.

"He's probably doing this to make me stay." Mom said curtly.

"No, he's not. If you love someone, you let them go. That's what he's doing. He trying to fix his relationship with us, his kids first." I explained.

"It's very cool." Bertin said.

The next few days, Dad was doing great and he got a new job. He got to be a basketball coach in a fancy private school as he got his license to teach. I went to many places with Alvin. I loved him more each day. We went to Gisele's graduation. When we were taking pictures Dad hugged Gisele and tears stung their eyes.

"I'm so proud of you, Gisele. I love you. I love you all." Dad said as he hugged Gisele.

"Thanks dad. It means a lot." Gisele said softly.