Page 29 of Nemesis
Twenty minutes later, we were parked in front of an old building that read Bemes Valley in blue-tainted metal letters on its front. A little girl was sitting outside on a bench a few feet away from the front door, an older woman standing right next to her.
This explained why he rushed to the store on the way here to grab a car seat.
I couldn’t see her face clearly, but she didn’t seem to be older than five years old. She was wearing what seemed like a school uniform, a yellow backpack strapped to her back. She was dangling her short legs on the edge of the bench, her eyes roaming around as she patiently waited for someone.
Is that…? No, it can’t be.
“Stay inside. I won’t be long,” he said, breaking the heady silence that had surrounded us on the drive over. He quickly got out of the car, slamming the door shut behind him before rounding the hood and jogging toward her.
Despite his warning, I slipped out, compelled to get a closer look.
As soon as she spotted him, the young girl jumped down the bench and started running up to him, her excited squeals filling the air. Her dark hair billowed behind her as she raced his way, a beaming smile lighting up her tanned face.
Once Theo reached her, she launched herself at his long legs since it was the only part of his body she could really reach from her height.
I strolled closer, following the strong urge to watch their interaction. My steps slowed to a stop when I was close enough to hear them, but not close enough to be noticed right away since their attention was fully focused on each other.
I couldn’t fully see her face yet, but I could see Theo’s reactions from the side. He wore the softest smile on his face, one I hadn’t seen in a long time.
“You’re here,” she said loudly, wrapping her little arms tighter around his legs before jumping up and down, buzzing with excitement. He placed a hand over her head, prompting her to stop and look up at him.
“I’m so sorry I’m late, Maya,” he said softly, kneeling until they were at eye level.
She pointed behind her at who I assumed was her teacher. “It’s okay. Miss Meena told me Mama is stuck at work and can’t pick me up,” she answered.
He gave her a small smile as he picked her up in his arms, tucking a loose curl that fell on her face behind her ear before placing a small kiss to her temple.
“Yes, they gave Mommy another few hours to work at the hospital,” he whispered against her head.
“I missed you,” she exclaimed, clinging to his neck, nuzzling her face in the crook of it.
When she pulled away, placing her hands on his cheeks, I froze in place, unable to move from the revelation that materialized in my mind when she finally came into full view.
She was absolutely beautiful. Her tight brown curls loose around her frame, cascading down her back as two small clips pinned the front pieces away from her round face.
What had taken me aback was that not only was she beautiful, she looked exactly like him, with her big brown eyes and high cheekbones. Tears flooded my eyes as the remnants of their conversation faded into the background.
A daughter. My Theo had a family.
Without me.
I felt my carefully constructed armor faintly crack under witnessing him be so at ease with her.
A soft laugh bubbled out of his throat and he kissed her temple. “Easy, baby.” He chuckled. “I missed you too,mijita.”
The whispers of his laugh carried through the frigid air and washed over me, the sound squeezing my chest tight.
God, I missed that sound.
Once upon a time, I’d thought I’d always have all of his chuckles to myself, that I’d know what they sounded like under each circumstance. But at that exact moment, I was reminded of how long seven years really was, of how I’d missed so much of his life.
That the life we’d planned on having together was vanishing like quicksand.
Watching Theo hold her sent a hammer to my chest, the cold metal pummeling into my heart until I felt another notch add itself to the dozens already present.
I put my hand over my heart, pressing hard to ease the pain.
I thought of the possibility of him moving on with someone else, but witnessing it and seeing how happy he looked holding her made me realize I might not have a home at the end of this. That my biggest fear when I started all of this had come to reality.
