#289 - Cheer Someone Up
“I just want to go home, Daddy.” Nancy wraps her arms around her knees and fixes him with a stare. For a moment, father and daughter stare into each other’s eyes, before Donald Thompson breaks the contact and looks away.
“I know that, baby. But you need to get better first.” His jaw tightens. “I need you to get better first.”
Nancy glances around the visitation room - there’s no one within earshot, so she leans her body forward, lowering her voice. “You know I’m not crazy. Please, Daddy… you know I’m not. Why are you doing this to me?”
When her father finally raises his eyes, she’s taken aback by the pain within them. If she looks hard, she can even see a thin sheen of tears. “Oh, Nancy. Nancy…” he trails off, his voice breaking. She’s in shock at the sight of her father, who she always thought of as invincible - he was a cop, for chrissake - displaying such raw emotion. “Nancy, why can’t you just admit it was all a dream and come home?” He’s actually pleading with her now, begging her. In that moment, Nancy realizes that her father will never be able to accept the truth. He knows what really happened to Tina, Glen, Rod, and her mother… but for all his strength, it wasn’t enough for this.
She can continue to stick to her story, and spend the rest of her life - or at least, a good portion of it - in this damn hospital. Or… she could deny the truth, like her father had. She could soothe his pain with a few simple words.
Nancy hesitates. Three years she had been in this place, and for three years she and her father had been opponents on opposite sides, each refusing to back down. Maybe it was time to cross the line, to get her life - and her Daddy - back.
She reaches out and grasps his hands in hers, smiling sadly. “Okay,” she says softly. “I’ll do it. I’ll say it was all a dream, and Krueger was just a figment of my imagination, and I realize that now.” Somewhere within herself, she knows it’s a lie - she’ll never truly deny the truth - but for now, he doesn’t need to know that. He returns her smile, the first she’s seen from him in a while, and gives her hands a squeeze; and she knows that she did the right thing… for now, at least.