Chapter Text
Dear Dad,
I had school today and chess club after it. I think it was the best day of school I have had this year. I got to explain what I meant by Mendel being my step-dad and then you and Whizzer. During school, a few of the others from the chess club asked me about it, but I told them I’d clarify after school. I was really nervous the whole day of school, but it gave me time to plan out what I was going to tell them.
During school, I saw Sarah and asked her if she would come to chess club with me today too, and she said she would. I also talked to a few of my friends from other classes during lunch. I talked to a lot of people today, I’m not sure why.
Then in English, we were reading such a boring book that I almost fell asleep in class. My teacher is kind of old and called me Marvin today! I can’t believe she did that! I don’t look that similar to you, do I? Her name is Miss Goldberg, so I guess you knew her. I wonder if she’s nice. She always wears sunglasses, even when we’re inside.
I kinda rolled my eyes at Miss Goldberg when she told me that I needed to pay close attention to the book and that’s when she called me your name. She looked really surprised after she called me Marvin and then she went to check her attendance sheet. She stopped paying super close attention to me, so that was nice, I may have fallen back asleep when she started reading again.
Now I’ll get to what happened at the chess club! I know that’s why you’re probably reading this letter and you’re probably bored by all of the school talk. Well, I brought Sarah to chess club and we all started talking about how school had gone for us that day.
Then one of the members asked me about my step-dad again. So, I explained that you were my actual Dad and then you and Mom divorced. I said that you and Whizzer started living together once you left and that Mom started talking to Mendel more. And one of the other members asked me why I didn’t think to mention you, so I cut him off by saying that you had died.
All of them looked really nervous after that. So I stopped and explained that you and Whizzer kinda stopped living together and then after 2 years you started living together again and then Whizzer got sick. I told them about how he was sick and didn’t get better, and that I had my Bar Mitzvah in the hospital.
So I told them that Whizzer passed away and then about a year or so went by and then you got sick too. And that you had passed away in August. It really hurt to talk about, but I think they got a better idea of why I didn’t explain it all right away. Some of the members of chess club were really nice and tried to comfort me, including Sarah. So we played some chess after talking for a while and that was really fun.
I walked Sarah home and was back home about an hour later than I was supposed to be and Mom was a little mad about that. But, I think she was happy when I said I was hanging out with another person.
I really hope they think good of you, Dad.
–Love, Jason. December 1983