Daniel was late back from the office once again - the third time this week.
The amount of paperwork submitted for his approval this time of year was getting ridiculous. He normally enjoyed his role as accounts manager for a medium sized sportswear firm on the westcoast. Not only did it give him the opportunity to try out some new products on the market before they went on general release but it paid well and usually it was a pretty laid back and flexible company. Following the messy divorce to his wife Patrice, the work-life balance the company offered was excellent in affording him the time to spend with his daughter, who he adored. Daniel was a fairly fit and healthy individual, and used to take part in a lot of sports in his younger days. He loved to windsurf and take the small yacht he shared with a co-worker out on alternate weekends.
Standing at 6'2 he was no slouch, and although he enjoyed a drink of whisky every now and again down at the yacht club on the harbor even at 45 he was hardly a pound overweight for his height. He liked to think that the only give-away for his age was his graying hair, but he wasn't yet vain enough to shave it all off or dye it in a fit of pique. Not yet anyhow.
He had hoped to be back earlier than this. It was 8pm as he approached the driveway to his 4-bed modest home in a semi-exclusive suburb. Since the divorce it had been difficult for his daughter and it wasn't fair to leave her to fend for herself so many nights in a row. He vouched to make it up to her as soon as the weekend arrived. Pulling up in the drive way in the jet black Audi, he took his sports bag out the boot of the car - always there in-case he wanted to embark on a spot of squash straight from the office. It currently contained his works suit he had worn early during the day, and now he was just clad in a pair of grey cotton slacks and a white t-shirt with red piping and the yellow company logo of Harbourt Sports on the lapel. He hadn't managed to go to squash, but he still felt the need to change.
"Work, stays at work, as do work clothes" was often his reasoning. He approached the porch noticing the lighting subdued and just his daughter's bedroom light on indicating any sign of life.
"Hey, hunny, Daddy's home." he shouts at the top of his voice as he crosses the threshold, eager to relax. Thursday, only one more day to get through until the weekend.
Samantha was used to coming home to a quiet house, but all the solitude gave her too much time to think of everything. Usually her thoughts would eventually turn towards anger. Anger at her mom for doing what she did to ruin the marriage. Anger at her dad for letting it all happen. Anger at the world for not caring. She was 18 now so she was an adult in the laws view, but in a lot of ways she was still just an angry teenager.
She had tried to keep as busy as possible so that she wouldn't have to think about it all. She would read as much as she could. Immersing herself in a world of magic and fantasy. Some of the books she was reading were dark, much too dark for a girl still trying to finish high school. She didn't really care what the other kids thought about her anymore. Actually since she started changing her appearance she reveled in the lack of attention. Actually that wasn't it at all. It wasn't that the kids were ignoring her. It was just that they were giving her a different kind of attention. Fear, or better yet intimidation. Her classmates were a little bit afraid of her now.
First came her hair. Overnight the long golden locks were gone, replaced by jet black short hair. Then came the piercings. First her ears were turned into sieves. Then an eyebrow gained a jewel. Next her nose, and then finally her lip dawned a metal loop. She definitely could not go through a metal detector without setting it off anymore.
Nowhere else was her change more noticeable than on the volleyball court. She loved playing volleyball because that was the only place she could totally forget about all of her problems. Her teammates were a little scared by her new hair and piercings, but they were glad to have a 5'9" outside hitter that could jump out of the gym. That skinny, quiet kid had a new fire in her that made her hit the shit out of the ball now. She heard her dad pull up and was immediately happier. She longed for the silence of the house to be broken. Even if it meant talking to a man that couldn't understand the things she was going through.
Leaving his bag at the bottom of the stairs to be carried up later Daniel strode through the house like a man with a purpose. He got through the hall, the kitchen and then the lounge as he made his way to the drinks cabinet. It wasn't that he was a particularly heavy drinker, it was just a little routine of his, his way of saying it was Thursday and that tomorrow is the end of the week. He was very loathe to do it any normal working night, but Friday's tended to be half-days in the office anyway. Opening a bottle of red wine he poured himself a large glass and then hesitated, his fingers around the stem of another glass. Would Samantha like a drink? Would it be inappropriate on school night? He took the glass anyway and poured half a glass, even if Samantha turns it down he'll finish it off. Judging by the way she has been rebelling with her appearance right now, he wondered if she would drink it or not.
"Hey where are you hunny?!" He moved to the bottom of the stairs and called up, the house sounded empty, not even any neo-classical music (rock or otherwise) playing from her bedroom. She must have her head in a book again.
"I've poured you a glass of wine. Have you eaten already?" His wife had been a superb cook, Daniel on the other hand was a takeaways, restaurants or ready meal guy. Not because he couldn't cook. Far from it, but these days he really didn't have the time to concoct the perfect meals his ex-wife always seemed able to.
"Come on down, and let you Old man see his favorite daughter!" he chuckled to himself, he'd called her that for years even though she was an only child. He placed some Wes Montgomery jazz on the old 45 record player and settled onto the sofa taking a large sip of the wine. She barreled down the stairs with all of her pent up energy from reading and studying. She liked alone time to an extent, but the prolong silence of the house these days really got to her. She was wearing grey sweat shorts that had been her favorite since the eighth grade. The only difference now was that her legs were way longer, and the short shorts left little to the imagination.
Her black tank top was of some heavy metal band that she liked, and then hated, and now just thought was ok. Her breasts had been nonexistent for so long, but now she was showing her womanliness. Her breasts were still small, but they were perky to the extent of pointing at the ceiling. They actually looked much bigger on her skinny long frame. And the fact that her shirt was a couple of sizes too small didn't make them any more inconspicuous.
