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“Neal?” she said gently, “what are you looking for?”

“I… I don’t know,” he replied honestly, pulling at the contents of another drawer

Elena said so in response, but he didn’t hear it His eyes fell on a yellowing letter that held his father’s neat scrawl George’s letter The one he had never been pererly and shook the dust froe He wondered for a e had never allowed hihed his conscience at that moment, and he sank onto the bed with the letter in hand

To e,

I want you to know that some of the best days of er, followingto absorb as much information as you could You were always a hard worker, and a deter that I would never have to worry about you You are a survivor

Which is why I feel like I can confide in you George – I’m worried about your brother Neal was always a sensitive boy He has become a sensitive man So much so, that he shies away from life because he’s afraid to live it His e, and he was so very close to her It was like they had their own language sometimes

Even I was jealous of their connection at tiether, and we had ours

When he lost her, he changed, and fool that I was, I assuot older Neal’s life; it's e is irlfriends It’s purpose and direction and fa important at the end of the day that is completely your own

I wanted to teach hiht I had all the ti this letter to you, because I need to ask you so I need to ask you to look after your brother, to help hi hile to hold on to, so that he stops being so very lonely I ht have told him all this myself, but there’s always been distance between him and I, and I have no one to blame for that but myself, and I have to admit – I’m scared

I know this is the end for e that would help uess that’s just a er

You are twice the e I kno much you’re capable of I kno much you can accomplish I trust you – not just with e and he needs your help I kno unfair it is ofan age, and to leave you to finish the things that I should have done myself, but you were always the betterthan I ever could have done I want you to kno proud I am of you You are the man I alished I could be

I love you son,

Your Father

Neal stared at the letter When his ain, and when he was finished, he read it a third ti an array of co e was bringing on more emotions than he cared to feel She walked over to him, and sat down on the bed next to him He didn’t seem to notice that she was even in the room

“Neal?” Elena asked uncertainly, “is everything OK?”