I was screaming. "He was going to kill me!"

She screamed back. "I know."

"I know what? I know that, but I'm going to visit him anyway? Why don't you bring him a strawberry cheesecake while you're at it."

"I don't know what you're gettin' so upset about. He's in jail."

"He's a criminal, he tried to kill me, and you make it sound like it's my fault he's in jail."

"Just forget it."

"No, I won't 'just forget it'. God I hate it when you do that. We're going to talk about this. I want to hear what you think you're going to accomplish by sitting with your daddy, who tried to kill me."

"I know already. He's my father. He asked me to come and-"

"Oh, he asked you. When did you talk to him?" She refused to answer. I wanted to physically shake her, not hurt her, just shake her awake. "When did you talk to him, tell me!"

"Look, I don't have to tell you everything. You think you're this old wise guy and you're not, cause if you were you would see that I don't have a choice, I have to go. And if you were an old wise guy, you wouldbe nice about it instead of being such an asshole."

I snorted a breath out of my nose. Quietly or at least with less aggression I said, "But don't you see Prudence, you do have a choice, that's all I want you to understand. You're a big girl, you don't have to do everything your daddy says."

She stood by the door with her leather jacket in hand, "But? I have to do everything you say?" And she left.

********

I convinced myself that it wasn't that I wanted her to do everything I said, that I was just concerned for her, which I was. My half-empty Heineken bottle glistened by the glow of the TV. No other lights wereon in the house and I waited while CNN kept me company. I thought maybe she would never come back, that her father would tell her where some money was and she would disappear. I wondered why that drove me absolutely crazy.

I heard her key in the lock and I was paralyzed with relief. I turned around and watched her drag her coat behind. She was crying.

"Hey, you okay?"

"Yes." She said as she broke down right in front of me. I hated seeing this. I jumped up and took her in my arms and tried to stop the pain with all my heart. I rubbed her back and her head and tried to rub thehurt away.

"What happened baby?"

"Nothing. It was fine, but on the bus ride back all I could think of was my future- a life like my father's."

"That's not your future."

"Then what is? You?"

This took me for surprise. Clearly that would be a drag for her and I knew she was right, but it pierced my heart.

"Prudence, I love you, but...well..."

"But what...?"

"But nothing. No one knows what the future's going to do to our lives, but we do have some control." She started crying hard into my shoulder.

"I'm so scared. I don't want to be a bad person."

I took her cheeks into my hands and looked her directly in the eyes. "You're not." She smiled a little then started to cry again.

I brought her in the bathroom and washed her face, then we sat up in bed drinking mint and chamomile tea while calming down.

Finally she whispered, "You know Mike, you're not such a drag. You're a pretty nice guy."

I don't know why, but that felt like just about the best thing anyone had ever said to me.