The request was rejected. Repentance never came and tragedy followed. If only he had accepted responsibility for the things that had happened in Watergate, but he never did. Repentance begins then with an acceptance of responsibility for your actions and the consequences of those actions. There was in his heart the hope that the father would at least allow him to find a place in the father's house again.
Repentance admits accountability.
There is no explanation offered by the young man. No excuse is presented. The repentance may not have the highest motive. The motivation of the young man may not have been the highest. From the reading of the text it would appear that he was motivated by his physical hunger.