What Daddy Needs

Phoebe unlocked the front door and let herself into the house. She dropped her backpack by the staircase and shrugged out of her denim jacket. Dropping it on top of her bag, she started toward the kitchen to get something out to make dinner before going upstairs to do her homework. She paused at the door to the kitchen. The TV was on in the den and she knew what that meant. Her dad had left his office early again as he had so often since returning from his last deployment. It had been overlooked so far because everyone understood what a toll the tour in Afghanistan followed a year and a half later by a year in Iraq had taken. An army brat since the day she was born sixteen and a half years earlier, Phoebe knew they weren’t going to keep ignoring it, though. “Hi, Daddy,” she said as she entered the family room. “Hey, baby,” he said turning to look over his shoulder at her. Phoebe leaned against the arm of the sofa and wrapped her arms around her dad’s shoulders. She leaned against him and kissed his cheek. “Do you need anything before I go upstairs and start my homework?” she asked. Her dad handed her the glass he held. “Refill,” he said smiling at her. She took the glass to the kitchen. The bottle was sitting on the black, granite top of the work island in the center of the room. She unscrewed the cap and poured the clear, topaz colored liquid into the glass. Lifting the bottle to her lips she took a swig herself before replacing the cap. She returned to the family room and handed the glass back to her dad. He took it without looking up. “Thanks, pumpkin,” he said absently before taking a large sip letting it caress his tongue before swallowing. Phoebe’s fingers trailed across his shoulder as she turned to leave the room. She returned to the kitchen and took the two steaks that her gran had bought earlier that day from the fridge. She sat them on the counter next to the range and headed back to the stairs to retrieve her bag and jacket. Phoebe rinsed the dishes and stacked them in the dishwasher as her little brother, Justin did his homework at the kitchen table. When the dishes were done she checked Justin’s homework then joined her dad in the den to watch TV for a while. She talked about her day at school and her dad drank. At nine she sent her brother to bed, making sure that he brushed his teeth first.