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Post by DancingDays on May 9, 2013 6:40:04 GMT -5
Huh. So THAT'S what it feels like to have your heart ripped out first thing in the morning. Thanks Kpatch.
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Post by MrsM on May 9, 2013 6:59:59 GMT -5
Uh yeah. That was brutal.
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Post by mae00 on May 9, 2013 9:12:57 GMT -5
Poor Phillip!!!
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Post by gapeach on May 9, 2013 10:39:58 GMT -5
Man oh Man! Poor Phillip. Am loving the start to this story. Understand why Phillip doesn't want to go back home with the presents and all the reminders of Parker (loved how the clerk was worried about filling out a "Slip and Fall Report"). It is strange that the only biological child Phillip had, he gave up (for a very good reason) and the two children he thought were his, turned out NOT to be! Poor Phillip...
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Post by slyn11 on May 9, 2013 10:49:46 GMT -5
Loved this so vivid and raw. I could see and smell, hear it all. Gut wrenching, which is so good.
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Post by Kpatch on May 9, 2013 11:23:51 GMT -5
Glad you all "like" the start of the story. Author's Note: Meant to mention that I changed the timeline, backed it up to the end of 2012 instead of the beginning of 2013. But other than that, everything that happened on air also happened in this story, except for Nancy taking Parker to Brazil, because that hadn't happened by the time I wrote this story. This story is intended to fill in the gaps, the things we should have seen when Chloe returned to Salem, but we didn't. Carry on ....
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Post by fluffysmom on May 9, 2013 11:41:43 GMT -5
Poor Philip. Love the beginning to the story. I can picture the scene so clearly. So glad that we finally get to see Philip deal with his loss.
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Post by gapeach on May 9, 2013 15:40:07 GMT -5
@kpatch you always bring the stories and characters to life. We can all feel Phillip's pain in dealing with yet another child being torn from his life. Thank you so much for sharing your incredible talent with us here!!
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Post by Kpatch on May 9, 2013 15:52:20 GMT -5
You are so sweet. Thank you gapeach. I love sharing the stories and I'm so happy to know they resonate with you.
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Post by Minako98 on May 9, 2013 15:56:46 GMT -5
Huh. So THAT'S what it feels like to have your heart ripped out first thing in the morning. Thanks Kpatch. What she said!
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Post by djm on May 9, 2013 22:06:28 GMT -5
Nothing like a good cry before bed. Great start to the story. I could feel Philip's pain and see him on the floor.
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Post by Kpatch on May 13, 2013 5:20:48 GMT -5
Chapter 2
The grocery store manager returned with a clipboard, pen and an Incident Report form. The grocer was middle aged and overweight, but he managed to situate himself on the floor next to Philip.
“Okay,” he said, slightly out of breath. “Name.”
Staring into space, Philip whispered, “Parker.”
The clerk started to write on the form. “Um, wait. Is that your first name or your last name?”
“First name. It was my son’s first name.”
“Was?” The man turned to look at Philip and saw his tear-streaked cheeks. “Oh man. Did you lose a kid?”
Philip nodded and his voice cracked. “Yeah. I lost my son.”
“Oh. Um. Sorry buddy. That’s rough. Especially on Christmas.”
Philip nodded slowly.
“Um,” the manager was at a loss for words. “Look. Um. My name is George.” He held out his hand and Philip absent-mindedly shook it. “Listen, we don’t have ta fill out this report if you ain’t hurt. You ain’t gonna sue us, right? So. Hows about I buy you dat pack a beer in your cart? It’ll be my Christmas present to you.”
George pulled himself to his knees. He reached into the cart and took two bottles of beer out of the pack. He handed one to Philip who twisted the cap off the bottle before taking a swig. Philip leaned his head against the shelf behind him and looked up at the ceiling.
“Funny how life goes. Just one month ago, I had everything,” Philip began. “Now ... now I have nothing. I wish I were dead.”
George awkwardly patted Philip’s shoulder. “Um ... do ya ... do ya wanna talk about it, Parker?”
“Name is Philip. And no, I don’t want to talk about it,” Philip said, but continued talking anyway. “You know, it was three years ago this week I got engaged? Three years.”
“So, you and the boy’s mother have been married around three years.”
Philip shook his head. “No. No she wasn’t Parker’s mother. But man, I was crazy about her. We had everything ahead of us. Everything. But I screwed up. I screwed it all up. Married only two months and I go and cheat on her.”
George arched his brows. He was hooked on the story already. “You cheated on your wife? With Parker’s mother?”
Philip nodded. “Yeah. Our whole lives changed that night. We thought we made a baby. Chloe got pregnant and ....”
“Chloe? She’s the girl you hooked up with. She got knocked up?”
“Yeah, but she wasn’t just a hook-up. I mean, she wasn’t just some random girl.” Philip looked George in the eye. “She was my first love. My high school sweetheart.” Philip smiled wistfully and patted his chest. “She was always here. Always in my heart no matter who else was in my bed.”
“Man, and I thought I had a complicated love life,” George said, somewhat in awe. “You got me beat.”
“I’d trade places with you in a heartbeat, George,” Philip said sincerely. “There were a few other women in my life, but no one like Melanie. And no one like Chloe. I never ever thought I’d cheat on Melanie. And I would never have cheated on her with anyone but Chloe. Ahh, it’s a long stupid story.”
George looked at his watch. “I got time. I mean, the wife and kids are expecting me, but they can wait a little longer.”
Philip looked at George and let out a wry laugh. “That one-night stand was the beginning of the end for me and Melanie. And it was the beginning of a second chance for me and Chloe ... but we didn’t know it then. See, after Parker was born, Chloe had some emotional problems, and I ended up with custody of the baby. I moved here from Salem alone ... gee, it’s almost two years ago now. And then ... then one day, there was a knock at the door. It was Chloe.”
To be continued ...
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Post by gapeach on May 13, 2013 5:41:58 GMT -5
I am glad Phillip has George to talk to! He needs someone who doesn't know any of the people and can just listen!
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Post by MrsM on May 13, 2013 6:51:01 GMT -5
Ugh. My heart is just broke for him.
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Post by DancingDays on May 13, 2013 6:59:48 GMT -5
Why am I picturing "Clarence the Angel" from "It's a Wonderful Life"?
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