Dad

The parent that DOESN'T call you a slut and a drug addict and kick you out of the house. The one who doesn't call up their family and tell them you "bashed" them when THEY'RE the one who's pushing YOU while screaming "HIT ME! C'MON HIT ME!". The parent who never lied about lawsuits and restraining orders and where all the money went. The parent who tells you when things go wrong, when he's out of cash for the week, when he drinks too much, when he crashes his car. The parent who admits his mistakes and sets the record straight. The one who takes care of you and makes sure you're doing everything safely. The parent who makes dorky jokes and tells you not to eat so much cookies because he "worked hard to get this gut" and he doesn't want me to look like that. The parent who calls me pathetic and rolls his eyes at me every time he says I smell like an ashtray. The parent who gives me money for coffee and gum and chips and soy sticks, just because I don't want to spend my own shit change. The parent who has always spoiled me and called me silly nicknames. The parent who tells me I've got too much make-up on, because I don't need it. The parent who does what I say. Asks me how to make his chat-site work. The parent who took us in and has a job and does something PRODUCTIVE on the weekend. The parent who's not over-consuming pain medication just because their toe hurt. The parent who lets me have the main bedroom in the house just because I wanted it. The parent who builds me furniture and buys me shelves with anchors and boats from the kids' section, just because I wanted it. The parent who made me act like a (more) sane, normal person rather than an angry, withdrawn person who punched walls and cupboards and threw glass bottles at people. The parent who I never fight with, who I can't be angry at. The parent I LOVE, not the parent I can't even PRETEND to stand to be around. The parent I appreciate, and am thankful to have in my life.