“I forgot my shoes.” She comes back and grabs the pink pair before running to her room.
“This is a lot of princesses,” Addison says, looking at the two boxes.
“Yeah, I put back the princess vanity set,” I admit to her, and her eyes go big. “I didn’t know if she had it or not.” I shrug. “I figure you can never have enough clothes or shoes. Or at least that is what
my mother always says.”
“You were right on that,” she agrees, standing up. “We should tell her.”
I nod at her. “Do you want to wait and do it while we eat?” I ask her, and she looks over her shoulder.
“How about we order the pizza and then break the news to her,” Addison suggests, picking up the bags and walking over to Avery’s room, putting them inside.
I stand and open my phone, ordering three pizzas since I don’t know what she eats on hers, with fries and some chicken wings. I also order a cheeseburger in case she doesn’t like the pizza. “I ordered the pizza. It should be here in twenty minutes.”
“Sounds good.” Addison nods at me as she wrings her hands in front of her.
“Where do you want to do this?” I ask her, looking around to see if there is a more comfortable place to tell her.
“The couch is good.” She points over at the brown couch, and I walk over to sit down on one end.
I look at the pictures hanging on the wall while Addison calls Avery.
I hear the sound of clicking and clacking, and when I look up, she is walking out of her bedroom with her pink dress on, with a red bandanna in her hair and gold shoes. She has one of the plastic earrings on the side of her ear and she is wearing every single bracelet that came with the set. She has five rings on two fingers. “Look at my dress,” she urges Addison as she turns slowly in her plastic shoes.
“You look amazing, now come sit down.” Addison motions with her head toward where I’m sitting. “Mr. Stefano and I want to talk to you.”
She walks over to me clicking and clacking her shoes the whole way. I suddenly really feel sorry for the person who lives under her. I sit at the edge of the couch as she comes over and sits next to me, leaving a little space for Addison. Instead of sitting next to her, she kneels in front of her. I have never in my life felt like this. Ever. My whole chest feels like it’s being crushed, yet it also feels like it’s going to explode.
“Look at my ring.” Avery holds up her hand to me. “Thank you for buying me presents.”
“You are so welcome,” I tell her.
“Honey,” Addison starts, and I can see she is blinking away tears as she sits back on her feet. “Do you remember when you asked if you had a dad?”
“He’s at work,” Avery says, and my heart sinks at the way her voice is, “very far, far, far, far away.” If it was any other time, I would have laughed at her exaggeration.
“He was at work,” Addison says and looks at me. I can see her swallowing the lump in her throat.
“Well, you see,” I start, turning to her, thinking of ways to say what needs to be said. “I was really busy.” I stop talking because none of this makes any sense to me.
But Avery just looks at me, tilting her head to the side. “Are you my dad?”
I swallow down the lump in my throat before I say the words. “I’m your dad.”
addison
. . .
I hear Avery ask the question, and my heart speeds up so much in my chest, I can’t even describe it. I try to swallow, but the lump has formed in my throat and nothing happens. Then I try to say something, but when I open my mouth, nothing, and I mean nothing, comes out. I blink away the tears forming in my eyes, but then Stefano looks at me and then back at Avery, saying the three words that will forever change this moment. “I’m your dad.” I feel as if I’m having an out-of-body experience as I look at Avery while she listens to his words. This, this moment right here, this is the moment I’ve dreamed about ever since she asked me about her dad. I should be happy, but there is a little bit of sadness to this moment.
Avery sits there in her new princess dress and looks up at him with matching eyes to her father.
“Did you get lost?” Her voice comes out soft.
Stefano chuckles at her question before he puts his arms around her. “A little bit.” He looks at me next. “But I’m here now.”
“Are you going to visit?” I can’t even imagine what she is going through. I hope this moment is a moment she will always remember.
“No.” He shakes his head, and my whole body feels like it’s drained. I thought I was ready for this conversation. I played it over and over in my head so many times over the past four years, but it’s nothing like I imagined. “I’m going to live here.” I don’t know who gasps out in shock first, me or Avery, who now jumps off the couch.
“You can sleep in my bed.” She grabs his hand, pulling him off the couch. “Come see my room.”
“Um…” I voice to his retreating back. He laughs, looking over his shoulder but goes with her as she pulls his finger toward her bedroom.
I get up from the floor but don’t follow them. Instead, I sit on the couch, and my head hangs forward. “I wanted a princess bed,” Avery starts to tell him, and I look toward her bedroom, “but Momma said maybe when I turn five.” I sit back on the couch, putting my head back.
“That sounds like a good present,” Stefano replies.
“I don’t think you can fit in my bed,” Avery finally declares to him, and all he can do is laugh.
“No, I have my own house,” he replies as they come back out of the bedroom. The sound of her
plastic shoes echoes throughout the room.
“Do you have a princess bed?” Avery asks him, and he shakes his head.
“Not yet, but I think I will soon,” he tells her and I stand, hoping my legs don’t give out on me.
“We should get dinner,” I start to say when my doorbell rings.
“That should be dinner,” Stefano states, walking to the door and pressing the button. “Who is it?”
“Delivery for Stefano,” the man replies, and he presses the button but doesn’t move from the door.
He waits for the guy to knock on the door and then looks out the peephole.
“You know who it is,” I tell him, and he just looks over at me.
“And I wanted to make sure,” he says, opening the door just enough for him to grab the food and then he closes it back with his foot.
“Who’s hungry?” he asks, and Avery tries to jump, but she’s afraid her shoes will come off.
“Me!” she shouts, walking over to the round dining table in the middle of the living room/dining room. “I’m very hungry.”
“Why are there three pizzas?” I ask as I make my way toward the table. He puts the three boxes on the table and then takes the brown bag that is on top of the boxes off.
“I didn’t know what toppings you like on it,” he admits, a bit flustered, “so I got one that is just cheese.” Taking the first box off the pile, he goes on, “Then a pepperoni, and I got one that has everything.”
“I like cheese,” Avery says as she tries to get onto her chair. One of her plastic shoes falls to the floor. “Did you get french fries?” she asks him, looking up at him.
“I did,” he confirms to her and all I can do is stand here, stuck in my shoes as if there is cement inside them.
“Yay!” Avery claps her hands.
“I’ll get the plates,” I finally say, walking over to the little kitchen counter and opening the cupboard. The four flat plates are piled next to the four soup bowls that sit next to the four small plates. I grab three plates and turn back around to put them on the table before walking over and grabbing three forks and two knives.
“You have to cut my pizza,” Avery tells him as he opens up the first pizza box, “’cause I can’t use the knife yet, or I’ll cut my hand off.”
I close my eyes, really wishing she would stop repeating the things I’ve told her. “I’ll cut your pizza,” Stefano says softly to her. “Which one do you want?” He looks at me as I pull the chair out that faces him and I sit down.