daisy stone

A moment of silence passed before Tarnas cleared his throat and began to speak. “That truly is an unforgivable crime. You are right to feel guilty, to hate yourself for the things you’ve done. That is what you are supposed to feel, and to admit it now means you are on the correct path. It means you are learning from your mistakes and want to do right. Whether or not you can ever truly make up for what you have done, you can still become a better man than you were before. You can become a man who helps instead of hurts, who strives to make the world a better place.”

I ran from my guilt, immersing myself deeper in Galvin’s lies, telling myself that my power protected me from all accountability. The things he did were even worse, the things he did to women, but he was so sure that it was his right, that any wrongdoing could be dismissed, and I wanted that assuredness. I wanted to never have to worry about what I was doing, to never doubt or question myself, because as long as I thought what I did was right, I wouldn’t have to fear failure or be afraid of making mistakes. But that was the true mistake, my greatest failure, and so many people suffered for it.”

Sarah stayed in that same position for a while, curled in ball right by his side, playing with his body hair and breathing in his scent. As she was thinking about making her retreat her hand strayed a bit too far down his belly and hit something scratchy. Though about to fall asleep, this curious sensation brought her out of it. She had pulled her hand back as soon as she felt it, but she once again brough her hand out to her dad’s stomach, fingers on her outstretched hand trailing down his flat stomach and just above his pelvis. With her pinkie finger she pressed down and felt that same patch of scratchy hair. Her sleepy mind finally registered what it was. It was his pubes.