The Late Night Call - [SAD VENT ART/STORY]
The call came in the middle of night. Sharp ringing pierced through the dark bedroom and pulled the man out his quiet slumber
Fortunately for Julius, feline genetics included the major perk of quick adaptability to nocturnal environments. His eyes shot open immediately, very quickly adjusting to the bedroom’s near total darkness. He turned to look at the phone resting on the bedside table.
It was his son. At this hour, that did not mean anything good.
Whether Julius was out on the town or asleep in bed, his time during the night was precious. His son knew this. If Kenneth, the insanely sweet and respectful kid that he was, chose to call up his father in the middle of the night, it had to be an emergency.
Steeling himself for the worst, Julius grabbed the phone and answered.
“Mmm- Kenny-boy?” the Luxray groggily spoke into his cell, “What’s going-”
He didn’t get to finish as his questioning was cut off by a series of frantic gasps, snotty sniffles, and choking sobs from the other end of the line. Definitely not good.
“*SNIFF* - *GASP* D-dad! Dad! *SNIFF* Puh- Please!! *GASP* *SOB*!!” the Luxio choked out.
“Ken! Ken! Hold on, Buddy. Talk to m-”
“PLEASE, DAD!! *SOB* *Hiccup*!!”
“Please, what? What do you need me to do, Son? What’s wrong?” Julius tried to level his voice. Though still somewhat asleep, he needed to embody both control and gentility in this moment.
“Dad, please *HICCUP**WHIMPER* Please tell me your o-okay. T-te- *CHOKE* -tell me yo-you’re still alive *WHINE*”
And there went Julius' heart shattering into a million pieces. It sounded like his boy was in the midst of a panic attack, somehow induced by the thought of his father’s demise. The poor kid.
“Yes, Buddy. I’m okay. I’m right here. This heart here’s still ticking. No need to worry. Now, please just breathe”
They stayed there for a while. Kenneth continued to sob whilst his dad quietly stood by on the other end. The tears and stuttered breathing sounded to be dying down when a new voice came over the phone.
“Bro, you okay?”
Damion had apparently been woken up and alerted to his brother’s plight.
At the same time, Julius noticed a certain Incineroar peeking into his room. Like father, like son, Darius had heard the commotion and popped over to see the situation. The Luxray made a motion for his friend to join him, which he took up.
“Julius?” Damion spoke into the phone, “what’s going on? Kenneth looks like someone ripped his heart out.”
“I’m not entirely sure. He just called me up asking if I was still alive?”
Julius could feel Darius make a sudden movement at that admission behind him on the bed.
“Why would he-?”
“I’m sorry, Dad *Sniff*” Kenneth brokenly spoke up.
Oh no.
“What are you sorry for, Ken?” his brother asked.
“I-I- *Sniff* It was just a dumb dream. *Hiccup* I- I got scared and thought you… *Gasp* *Whimper* I’m so stupid”
“No, no, don’t say that. You’re not stupid” his father reassured.
“I AM! It was just a dream and I actually thought it was real!”
“Even adults get the odd nightmare, Kenny,” Darius then spoke.
Muffled sobbing was the only answer they received to that. Thus, Julius made the next move.
“Do you wanna talk about it? The nightmare?”
More sobbing followed.
“Maybe it’ll help?”
Silence.
And then, some deep breaths.
“O-okay,” he began to answer, “but *hiccup* c-can I see you? O-on the phone? *sniff*”
“Of course, Buddy. Damion, can you-”
“On it.”
At that, the phone call was switched over to a video chat. Julius finally saw the state his son was in. He saw Kenneth sitting on his bedroom floor, huddled up and shivering under a blanket. Behind the mess of bed-head hair that fell over his face, there peered out two bright yellow eyes shining in the darkness. They were wet and reddened with the tears now falling down his cheeks. The sight reminded him of days long past, of the tiny, crying Shinx who would come running to his dad after a bad dream. Julius felt his chest ache.
“*sniff* Y-you’re alright,” Kenneth cried.
“I am,” his father reassured him, “I’m right here and I’m not going anywhere. Do you still want to talk about the dream?”
Kenneth looked down for a moment, then took in as deep a breath as he could manage.
“I-it was like… a normal day, like, I couldn’t even *hiccup* tell it was a dream. *sigh* And-and then, I got a *hiccup* call from Darius. *sniff* H-he said he found you in bed. Y-you *gasp* you weren’t breathing. H-he told me yo-you were *hiccup* *gasp* e-everything just started to crumble and f-fall *huff* *gasp* *huff*”
“And this is where you woke up and called me…” Julius finished for him. A heart wrenching whimper answered him back.
Poor kid.
Even if he was an adult, even if it was all imaginary, just the thought of losing a parent he loved so much broke his oversized heart.
Kenneth had been lucky enough to have never truly felt such a pain in his life as of yet. No major family members that he had held close had ever died on him. Same with Damion and Darius. Julius was different.
Julius’ own father had passed away when he was starting his teenage years, leaving behind him, his brothers, and their mother. But, that was a different scenario. Julius and his father didn’t have the kind of relationship that he and Kenneth had.
Julius loved his son. Kenneth loved his dad. Kenneth needed his dad. Julius was going to give him what he needed.
“You know,” he spoke gently, “I’ve had bad dreams like that before”
Kenneth stilled. He looked into the phone’s display with wide eyes, but didn’t speak.
“Dreams about losing loved ones. Of my mom in her funeral bed. Of my brothers getting sick or into accidents. Of Darius never coming home from work. All pretty nasty dreams. But, the worst ones are about losing you”
“R-Really?”
“Really. While you were growing up, I’d have nightmares of you getting hurt and it being all my fault. Then, I’d wake up panicked and rush to your room to make sure you were okay. Not unlike you did just now.”
Julius’ eyes started to water.
“But, you always turned out just fine. *sniff* And you’re still here, today. Same as me. I’m still here for you whenever you need. I don’t plan on going anywhere.”
Kenneth actually managed a small, wobbly smile.
“I love you, Dad”
“I love you, Son”
After that, all four simply spent time talking to each other. They talked about their days, things happening at work, the weather, and whatever else made for simple, mundane chatter. Somewhere in between, Darius made a cup of hot cocoa for his steadily calming, teary-eyed brother.
Within an hour, Kenneth had grown tired and ready to return to bed. The other three were more than ready to follow suit.
They said their goodbyes and goodnights, and ended the call.
Darius, having no willpower to get back to his own bedroom, stayed in Julius’ bed. The two immediately snuggled together into their usual sleeping embrace (why did they even have separate beds anymore).
As Julius nuzzled into the Incineroar’s warm chest, the last thing he heard that night was Darius whispering into his ear.
“You did good, Juli. Kenny’s lucky to have a dad like you~”
Hello, Everyone. I know this type of post may seem out of the ordinary for me. This picture and story were made as a means of venting some emotions of mine after a recent tragedy in my life. I don’t intend to bring anyone down, so if you don’t want to hear this bad news, I will hold nothing against you for clicking away.
A couple weeks ago, my mother received a call that my dad had suddenly passed away. In the wake of his death, my family and I have been going through a lot of hurdles and emotions to try and piece our lives back together.
It’s honestly hard to fully express my own emotions on this. I still feel like this is all unreal. I feel like I’m just waiting for my dad to walk in the door and tell me that this was all some sick joke. But, that’s not going to happen. My dad is gone. And I can’t even say goodbye to him.
In trying to sort out my feelings, the idea for this little short story came to me. Healthy and loving Father-Child relationships are a major, recurring core in a lot of my original stories, especially with the Polks-Castle family. So, consider this a bit of hurt/comfort wish fulfillment. I may have lost my father but Damion and Kenneth won’t have to suffer the same fate so long as their stories are in my hands.
If you take anything away from this little speal, I hope it’s that you always cherish your loved ones while you still have them with you. If they’ve already passed on, hold them tight in your memories. If they’re far away, never be afraid to send them just a little “I love you”. You’ll never know when it could be the last time to say it.
Thank you for bearing with me, Friends. Know that I am holding up and doing okay for the moment, and that my more fun art will come again sometime soon. I wish you all the best. Please, stay safe out there.
Fortunately for Julius, feline genetics included the major perk of quick adaptability to nocturnal environments. His eyes shot open immediately, very quickly adjusting to the bedroom’s near total darkness. He turned to look at the phone resting on the bedside table.
– [ KENNY-BOY CALLING ] –
It was his son. At this hour, that did not mean anything good.
Whether Julius was out on the town or asleep in bed, his time during the night was precious. His son knew this. If Kenneth, the insanely sweet and respectful kid that he was, chose to call up his father in the middle of the night, it had to be an emergency.
Steeling himself for the worst, Julius grabbed the phone and answered.
“Mmm- Kenny-boy?” the Luxray groggily spoke into his cell, “What’s going-”
He didn’t get to finish as his questioning was cut off by a series of frantic gasps, snotty sniffles, and choking sobs from the other end of the line. Definitely not good.
“*SNIFF* - *GASP* D-dad! Dad! *SNIFF* Puh- Please!! *GASP* *SOB*!!” the Luxio choked out.
“Ken! Ken! Hold on, Buddy. Talk to m-”
“PLEASE, DAD!! *SOB* *Hiccup*!!”
“Please, what? What do you need me to do, Son? What’s wrong?” Julius tried to level his voice. Though still somewhat asleep, he needed to embody both control and gentility in this moment.
“Dad, please *HICCUP**WHIMPER* Please tell me your o-okay. T-te- *CHOKE* -tell me yo-you’re still alive *WHINE*”
And there went Julius' heart shattering into a million pieces. It sounded like his boy was in the midst of a panic attack, somehow induced by the thought of his father’s demise. The poor kid.
“Yes, Buddy. I’m okay. I’m right here. This heart here’s still ticking. No need to worry. Now, please just breathe”
They stayed there for a while. Kenneth continued to sob whilst his dad quietly stood by on the other end. The tears and stuttered breathing sounded to be dying down when a new voice came over the phone.
“Bro, you okay?”
Damion had apparently been woken up and alerted to his brother’s plight.
At the same time, Julius noticed a certain Incineroar peeking into his room. Like father, like son, Darius had heard the commotion and popped over to see the situation. The Luxray made a motion for his friend to join him, which he took up.
“Julius?” Damion spoke into the phone, “what’s going on? Kenneth looks like someone ripped his heart out.”
“I’m not entirely sure. He just called me up asking if I was still alive?”
Julius could feel Darius make a sudden movement at that admission behind him on the bed.
“Why would he-?”
“I’m sorry, Dad *Sniff*” Kenneth brokenly spoke up.
Oh no.
“What are you sorry for, Ken?” his brother asked.
“I-I- *Sniff* It was just a dumb dream. *Hiccup* I- I got scared and thought you… *Gasp* *Whimper* I’m so stupid”
“No, no, don’t say that. You’re not stupid” his father reassured.
“I AM! It was just a dream and I actually thought it was real!”
“Even adults get the odd nightmare, Kenny,” Darius then spoke.
Muffled sobbing was the only answer they received to that. Thus, Julius made the next move.
“Do you wanna talk about it? The nightmare?”
More sobbing followed.
“Maybe it’ll help?”
Silence.
And then, some deep breaths.
“O-okay,” he began to answer, “but *hiccup* c-can I see you? O-on the phone? *sniff*”
“Of course, Buddy. Damion, can you-”
“On it.”
At that, the phone call was switched over to a video chat. Julius finally saw the state his son was in. He saw Kenneth sitting on his bedroom floor, huddled up and shivering under a blanket. Behind the mess of bed-head hair that fell over his face, there peered out two bright yellow eyes shining in the darkness. They were wet and reddened with the tears now falling down his cheeks. The sight reminded him of days long past, of the tiny, crying Shinx who would come running to his dad after a bad dream. Julius felt his chest ache.
“*sniff* Y-you’re alright,” Kenneth cried.
“I am,” his father reassured him, “I’m right here and I’m not going anywhere. Do you still want to talk about the dream?”
Kenneth looked down for a moment, then took in as deep a breath as he could manage.
“I-it was like… a normal day, like, I couldn’t even *hiccup* tell it was a dream. *sigh* And-and then, I got a *hiccup* call from Darius. *sniff* H-he said he found you in bed. Y-you *gasp* you weren’t breathing. H-he told me yo-you were *hiccup* *gasp* e-everything just started to crumble and f-fall *huff* *gasp* *huff*”
“And this is where you woke up and called me…” Julius finished for him. A heart wrenching whimper answered him back.
Poor kid.
Even if he was an adult, even if it was all imaginary, just the thought of losing a parent he loved so much broke his oversized heart.
Kenneth had been lucky enough to have never truly felt such a pain in his life as of yet. No major family members that he had held close had ever died on him. Same with Damion and Darius. Julius was different.
Julius’ own father had passed away when he was starting his teenage years, leaving behind him, his brothers, and their mother. But, that was a different scenario. Julius and his father didn’t have the kind of relationship that he and Kenneth had.
Julius loved his son. Kenneth loved his dad. Kenneth needed his dad. Julius was going to give him what he needed.
“You know,” he spoke gently, “I’ve had bad dreams like that before”
Kenneth stilled. He looked into the phone’s display with wide eyes, but didn’t speak.
“Dreams about losing loved ones. Of my mom in her funeral bed. Of my brothers getting sick or into accidents. Of Darius never coming home from work. All pretty nasty dreams. But, the worst ones are about losing you”
“R-Really?”
“Really. While you were growing up, I’d have nightmares of you getting hurt and it being all my fault. Then, I’d wake up panicked and rush to your room to make sure you were okay. Not unlike you did just now.”
Julius’ eyes started to water.
“But, you always turned out just fine. *sniff* And you’re still here, today. Same as me. I’m still here for you whenever you need. I don’t plan on going anywhere.”
Kenneth actually managed a small, wobbly smile.
“I love you, Dad”
“I love you, Son”
After that, all four simply spent time talking to each other. They talked about their days, things happening at work, the weather, and whatever else made for simple, mundane chatter. Somewhere in between, Darius made a cup of hot cocoa for his steadily calming, teary-eyed brother.
Within an hour, Kenneth had grown tired and ready to return to bed. The other three were more than ready to follow suit.
They said their goodbyes and goodnights, and ended the call.
Darius, having no willpower to get back to his own bedroom, stayed in Julius’ bed. The two immediately snuggled together into their usual sleeping embrace (why did they even have separate beds anymore).
As Julius nuzzled into the Incineroar’s warm chest, the last thing he heard that night was Darius whispering into his ear.
“You did good, Juli. Kenny’s lucky to have a dad like you~”
Hello, Everyone. I know this type of post may seem out of the ordinary for me. This picture and story were made as a means of venting some emotions of mine after a recent tragedy in my life. I don’t intend to bring anyone down, so if you don’t want to hear this bad news, I will hold nothing against you for clicking away.
A couple weeks ago, my mother received a call that my dad had suddenly passed away. In the wake of his death, my family and I have been going through a lot of hurdles and emotions to try and piece our lives back together.
It’s honestly hard to fully express my own emotions on this. I still feel like this is all unreal. I feel like I’m just waiting for my dad to walk in the door and tell me that this was all some sick joke. But, that’s not going to happen. My dad is gone. And I can’t even say goodbye to him.
In trying to sort out my feelings, the idea for this little short story came to me. Healthy and loving Father-Child relationships are a major, recurring core in a lot of my original stories, especially with the Polks-Castle family. So, consider this a bit of hurt/comfort wish fulfillment. I may have lost my father but Damion and Kenneth won’t have to suffer the same fate so long as their stories are in my hands.
If you take anything away from this little speal, I hope it’s that you always cherish your loved ones while you still have them with you. If they’ve already passed on, hold them tight in your memories. If they’re far away, never be afraid to send them just a little “I love you”. You’ll never know when it could be the last time to say it.
Thank you for bearing with me, Friends. Know that I am holding up and doing okay for the moment, and that my more fun art will come again sometime soon. I wish you all the best. Please, stay safe out there.
Category Story / Pokemon
Species Pokemon
Gender Multiple characters
Size 1280 x 914px
Sorry for your loss polks, take your time to heal during this time, I know too these feelings.
Your memories of them you cherish would make them happy.
Your memories of them you cherish would make them happy.
Very good story driven by pathos. I am sorry about your lose, my condolences.
It's scenes like these that I really enjoy. You did amazing with this written masterpiece. Keep up the amazing work.
You have our support, Polks. The story and art are both lovely.
I’m very sorry for your loss, Polks, I offer my sincerest condolences
I can feel your pain I've lost all my grandparents and aunties to Cancer
Though unfortunately he's
passed away, Your father will never truly leave you. He lives on the next life watching over you.
You both love each other and that's what matters most. Death is never truly the end, it's a start to a brighter and better future.💗
May he rest in peace.
passed away, Your father will never truly leave you. He lives on the next life watching over you.
You both love each other and that's what matters most. Death is never truly the end, it's a start to a brighter and better future.💗
May he rest in peace.
Very powerful, emotional piece.
I'm very sorry you've experienced such loss. :(
I'm very sorry you've experienced such loss. :(
I’m so sorry for your loss. I loved this story, it made me cry. ❤️
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