Juniper's POV
I cling to my father as tears stream down my face. I can't seem to catch my breath. It was only a few days ago that I was mourning his absence, and now he's here, in my living room, in my arms.
"I missed you, Daddy," I whimper and he hugs me tighter.
"I missed you, too, darling," He whispers back. "So much."
I finally pull myself together and pull away from my father to examine his face. He hasn't changed much since his "death." He still has short blonde hair and dark green eyes. His features are only slightly older looking.
"Why aren't you dead?" I ask, sitting down with him on the couch. He sighs and looks me in the eyes before launching into a sad, lonely story. He tells me he did what he did to protect me and my mom and Josh. I do understand, but the grief was still immense.
"Don't you dare do anything like that again," I say, pointing a finger at him. He smiles and agrees, then hugs me again.
"So what does the world think you are?" I ask, leaning back against Niall when he sits down behind me.
"They think I'm dead," Dad says, leaning back against the couch. "I have a fake ID and everything that I made before I faked my death to use. It's authentic, it just isn't my name."
I nod, knowing how that kind of thing works. "I see," I say. "Why did you have to wait so long to let me know you're okay?" I ask him.
Dad sighs and leans his elbows on his knees. "I had to be sure the mission had been succeeded by another agent and all the activity around it died out, Then I had to wait for them to stop messing with the case of my death and to stop bothering you guys, by that time, you were living here and your mother and Josh were living on their own."
I nod slowly and a thought strikes me. "Have you talked to mum or Josh yet?"
He shakes his head. "I came to you first. I was hoping we could go see them together."
I look to Niall to try and read his opinion in his eyes. I see wariness but also trust and curiosity. So I take it he wants to go, but wants to be careful.
"We'll go with you, Niall and I," I say, grasping my dad's hand. "Boy will they be glad to see you." Dad smiles at me.
"By the way, Daddy, this is Louis," I say, grabbing Louis' arm and dragging him closer. "Louis Tomlinson. He's like my big brother."
"Pleasure is mine, Louis," My dad says, flashing Louis a winning grin. Louis smiles back.
"So, I'll call my mom and tell her I'm coming home for a little while. You guys will come and we can stay at my house so you're a surprise to your family. John, my mom's gonna flip when she sees you," Niall says, smiling.
My father and Niall's mother were best friends all through university, were both part of each other's weddings, and ended up being neighbors a few years later with Niall and I as their brilliant children.
"Let's do it!" I say, jumping up and fist pumping the air. I do weird things when I'm exhausted.
"But lets rest tonight and we can leave tomorrow?" Niall suggests. "I'll call Paul and make flight arrangements for tomorrow afternoon. Louis, you coming?" Niall asks Lou, who's being very silent.
"Hmm, what? Oh, no, you go on and have a fun family vacation. I'm always available by phone," Louis says, laughing a bit.
"Sounds good," I smile, walking back toward my room, Niall following. "We better pack. Make yourself at home, Dad. Eat whatever you'd like, et cetera. We'll be back in a few," I say, walking down the hallway to my bedroom.
I start to get nervous for my family's reaction to seeing Dad again. Especially my mother's. She was so in love with my father and so torn to bits when he was gone. She'll definitely cry when she sees him.
A playful grin dances across my lips as I repack my suitcase. I can't wait to take Dad home.

Notes

Sorry, again its short. I have a lot going on and it's kind of hard to spend too much time on this story.
Thanks for being patient! Love y'all!
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~livelaughlove