My dad was horrible. I also had to keep a distance in the end to protect myself, but I couldn't escape at 16 because I had no way to get enough money, and was scared of sleeping on the streets.

Managing expectations is important. I was trying to think about what you mentioned - high school graduation and college. Well, in the uk we don't have high school graduation. We just have a results day when we collect an envelope that tells us whether we've passed or failed. And starting college was no big deal. I just started. My dad certainly wasn't present to celebrate either event and I didn't expect him to be, so I wasn't disappointed. I assume my mum was there but the whole thing was a bit of a non-event. Mum came to my degree graduation.