Steve wanders
the party in a daze. Everyone looks so happy here. People who have been dead for years, in his universe, are alive again. Hank and Jan are happily together (he never hit her in this universe, he remembers). Valeria Richards has grown up to be a lovely, polite, extraordinarily intelligent young woman, despite all of the danger
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"Happy Anniversary, Dad!" she says, jumping up on him in an over-enthusiastic hug. She hops back and grins from ear to ear. "Tommy and Billy have been monopolizing the music all night to impress the girls, but they have strict orders to play old stuff once you got here. So don't worry, I'm sure they'll be switching anytime now."
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He's been avoiding Sally all day, but he knows now that it's been a mistake. This isn't about him. This is about his daughter, who he loves. He's been selfishly keeping his distance, too paralyzed by the idea of what he has to do to her. But if he's resigned himself to that terrible fact, the least he can do is make Sally's last hour on earth a happy one.
"Don't worry, Sally," he says, finally letting her go. "I think I can put up with the ruckus the boys call music for a little while longer. Are you enjoying the pary?"
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"Come on," she says, taking his hand. "Tommy's got the songs all figured out. Dance with me?"
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Steve hears the song kicking up; he doesn't recognize it, but it definitely has father-daughter themes. "Of course," he replies, taking her hand and forcing himself to smile. "Anything for my little girl." And they begin to move across the dance floor.
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Sally giggled. "Do you remember, Dad, when Billy thought only Tommy had powers and he was so upset he magically made Tommy invisible for a day? Accidentally? I mean, not that it was funny at the time, but, it seems pretty silly now."
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As the song ended Sally hugged her dad tight. "This, though? This I'll remember. Thanks, Dad. For everything you are."
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"Thank you, Sally," he says, his voice completely genuine and much stronger than he would have expected. "For being the best daughter a father could ever ask for. I love you more than words could possibly say. And in the long run, that's all I need you to remember."
He squeezes her hands, places a last kiss on her forehead, and lets her go.
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