Page 98 of Can't Fight the Moonlight

"Yes, I blame you. Why did you have to do everything to the extreme? Why did you have to keep wanting more?"

"I could ask you the same question. You're doing fantastically well, but you keep pushing, keep driving yourself hard, and at what cost? What are you going to miss out on?"

"We're talking about you. About why you're not here when you should be."

"It was an accident, Justin. I didn't want to die. I just didn't have enough sense to be more careful. I thought I was invincible. It was my fault what happened. It wasn't on Mom and Dad. Sure, they were gone a lot, and maybe if they'd been around, I wouldn't have had the opportunity to be as free as I was. But it might not have mattered, because I liked pushing the envelope. You have to find a way to forgive them."

"I can't."

"Yes, you can. You know why I never gave you a sign before?"

"Why?"

"Because you weren't ready. You couldn't hear me. Your heart was frozen shut."

"I was in pain," he admitted. "I missed you so much, Sean. You were the only one who was there for me. You practically raised me."

"I think you've forgotten that Mom and Dad were around at least some of the time."

"I don't remember that; I just remember you being there, and then you weren't."

"But I taught you well. You're doing good. You took my robot and turned it into an incredible company. I'm proud of you."

"I did it for you."

Sean shook his head. "If you want to do something for me, stop using me as an excuse."

"I don't use you as an excuse."

"Yes, you do. You're not a kid anymore. You need to talk to Mom and Dad. You need to look at them, see them for who they are. They're human. They made mistakes. But they aren't all bad. And they do love you."

"It's hard to let go of the anger," he admitted.

"It's getting easier, isn't it, since you met Lizzie? She's really something. Grandma did a good job setting you two up."

He frowned. "I don't want to talk about her."

"Because you hurt her tonight."

"She deserved it. She betrayed me."

"Now she's the villain, too?"

"You don't know what she did."

"I know she cares about you, and you care about her. Are you really that angry about what she did, or is it that you're looking for a reason to push her away?"

"I wasn't looking for her to betray me."

"But now you're using your anger to end what could be great."

"It was going to end anyway. It's just happening a day earlier than it would have."

Sean gave him a disappointed look. "You're so brave in other parts of your life. You take risks. You put yourself out there, but when it comes to love, you're a coward."

"I'm not a coward; I'm a realist. Love sucks. There's always disappointment and pain. Why go through that?"

"Because of all the good shit that comes with it. Don't live such a narrow life, Justin. Be better than me, than Mom, than Dad. We all had tunnel vision, and it cost us. You're going down the same road. But you can open your eyes and your heart. Do it before it's too late. The one thing in your life you've always wanted is love. If someone wants to give it to you, don't you think you should take it?"

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