"Get up baby," I groan and burrito myself deeper into my blanket.

I hear Daddy chuckle before he starts to unravel my blanket. "Get up sleepy head!"

"Noooo," I whine as he manages to pull off my blanket and I curl in on myself trying to keep warm.

Daddy dramatically throws himself on top of me before I feel him tickling my sides. I squeal and trash against him, he finally lets up when I can no longer breathe from how hard I'm laughing. It's safe to say I'm fully awake as I sit up to glare at dads goofy grin.

"Fix you're face baby! It's Daddy, Daughter Day! We are going out get ready and wear a swimsuit under your clothes," his smile is wide and I don't have it in me to tell him I've got a date today.

I agree and as soon as he's out of my room I pick up my phone to call Vincent.

"Good morning beautiful," he chirps happily as soon as he answers the phone.

"Hey! I know we had plans today but can we maybe postpone them for later tonight or tomorrow?" I ask hesitantly and hear Vincent sigh.

"Sure beautiful," he replies disheartened. "Is something wrong?"

"No. Daddy planned a DD-day for us."

I hear him chuckle over the line and I feel my anxiety settle knowing he understands why I need to reschedule.

"Alright, beautiful. Have fun call me later when you're free."

"Okay, I will. I love you see you later!"

"I love you too."

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Forty-five minutes later Daddy is parking at the pier and we both decide to leave our stuff in the car. Dad strips off his shirt and right away the girls who are parked in a jeep two spaces away from us are ogling him.

"Daddy keep your shirt on!" I hiss out and he looks at me baffled.

I'm not dumb. Dad is still young and handsome as ever. I've heard the girls at school and even a few of the teachers talk about him the few times he's shown up at school.

But today is our day and I'd rather not be annoyed with all these ladies undressing my dad right in front of me.

"We're going to get wet baby, I can't wear my shirt."

"Please," I plead. "It's embarrassing."

Just then the girls laugh loudly and Dad turns around to see both girls blatantly checking him out. His face turns red and he quickly covers his chest with his hands and I can't help but laugh at him.

"You don't have boobs Daddy," I giggle and he pouts slightly.

"Be quiet you shouldn't tease your poor old dad," he says pulling his shirt back on.

"Come on let's go," he says locking the car and taking my hand in his.

We walk along the beach towards the cliffs where people dive off. Our silence is calming, the sun shines happily on us and the sand is soft and warm beneath my feet.

"Did I ever tell you about the first time I met your mom?"

"You guys met at the magic shop! She needed you all to find her passion," I say recalling the story my uncles have told me several times.

"Well, that's not exactly it. I met her because of work, but our actual first meeting was almost a week after she first asked for help. I was really young back then, never had a serious girlfriend, and had listened all week as your uncles who had met her said she was very feisty and just as gorgeous," he smiles to himself clearly seeing an old memory.

"So I came up with a plan for my day to get her into as very little clothing as I could. I showed up at her job right before she got off and I swear I was hooked the second she stepped outside. Now let me tell you. Your dad over here was a lady killer," he starts and I laugh so hard I snort while he playfully glares at me.

"Anyways. Your mom though. She had me feeling like a fumbling fool. I believe I called her babe as soon as I spoke and felt like a complete idiot but then she laughed at me and I didn't want her smile to ever go away.

The car ride was long and I had no idea what to say to her. As soon as we got to the beach I shoved her into a changing room with a bikini I picked out for her. When she came out I knew I made a mistake cause it was torture being there with her like that for work. I took her hand and dragged her up these cliffs with me."

We get to the top and my heart sinks into my stomach as I see how far the jump down is. I can feel the breeze a lot more now that we are higher and I nervously gulp down the saliva that's flooded my mouth.

"We could die doing this!" I say in absolute horror, and Dad laughs.

"You know your so much like her. She said the same thing. Your mom was one of the bravest people I ever met but oh gosh could she complain."

"I feel like it's not complaining if she's right! Do you see how far down it is from here," I say hoarsely as I slightly lean forward to see over the cliff.

"We can do it together baby! I won't let you go," Dad says intertwining our fingers as he guides me to step back a few feet.

"Do you promise?" I ask nervously and he grins down at me.

"Always."

"3"

"2"

"1"

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"That was CRAZY!" I say excitedly as my blood is still rushing with adrenaline.

Dad smiles but I see the tears threatening to fall. I pause and wrap my arms around him breathing in his comforting scent.

"I knew by the end of that day that I never wanted to let your mom go. She took my hand just like you did and bravely jumped off the cliff with me," he says holding me tight.

"Do you know why I wanted to come here today?" he asks pulling away from me and I shake my head.

"Because baby, I wanted you to know that you can face any of your fears, you are braver than you think. You got everything good that was in your mother and I want you to remember that any time you face something scary or hard."

"But, I only jumped because you were there," I mumble and he shakes his head.

"You jumped all on your own, baby. I didn't force you off that cliff, you ran and jumped all on your own."

"Yea, but you held my hand."

"I want you to remember you never have to do anything alone. I know I messed up before but I'm still your Daddy and I'll always be right here to hold your hand through everything. But that doesn't take away anything from you, you still did it and I was only the support."

"The Donkey to my Shrek," I tease and Daddy gasps loudly.

"First of all I'd like to say I'm more of a Tony Stark to your Peter Parker," he argues back wrapping an arm around my shoulder as he leads me back to the car.

"Hey, Dad."

"Hmm?"

"I actually want to talk to you about something," I say nervously. He stays quiet keeping me close as I try and gather my courage.

"I don't want to go to college right away after I graduate next year," I hold my breath as I wait for Dad to blow a fuse but he just smiles down at me giving my shoulder a reassuring squeeze.

"I know," he finally says and I finally draw in a breath.

"Your school counselor reached out to me and suggested a few programs that would allow you to travel and earn a few college credits along the way. Granted you would come back and still need to take quite a few classes to complete your associates."

"Do you think I could do it?" I ask skeptically.

"I think you can do anything you put your mind to baby. And remember I'll always be here to help any way I can," he leans down to press a kiss to the top of my head and I feel like a weight has been lifted off my shoulders.

Dad and I haven't had any major hiccups since the Violet situation but things just haven't felt back to normal with us. My junior year is coming to an end and my senior year will be done before I even know it. I've been thinking about how to approach this with Dad for weeks but this whole outing has shown that he's been paying attention he's invested and he cares. I feel closer to him than I have in years and now that I have his approval to go I'm more scared than ever. What will I do without him? Will the distance cause us to be distant?

"Let you grow through your phases. Cheer you on from the side. And the sweetest thing is knowing that you've got love from the short short list of the people in it for the long haul

You see, your clothes your shoes and your best friend. They ain't gonna stay the same. Your reckless years and your missed age I promise you they'll fade away. But trust me, the one thing that nothing in this world can change is you and me will be always," Dad sings the song he's sung to my whole life and I feel it soothe my worry the same his smell does as he engulfs me into his strong arms.

"Always. You and me will be always," I mumble into his chest happily.

Excited for what my future holds knowing I can face it bravely.

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