Mend What's Broken

Daughter

Lizzie's POV

I was awoken by a beam of sunlight peeking through the window curtains, its orange glow spreading into the rest of the living room.

I felt a weight on top of me, and lifted my head to find Margo laying on top of me completely and a blanket still sprawled over top of us both. I couldn't help the smile that grew to my lips when I saw my daughter at peace. I pushed a stray strand of hair behind her ear, but had to stifle a small laugh at her cheek that was adorable scrunched up against my chest.

Adorable..

Knowing I absolutely had to freeze this moment, I reached for my phone that was luckily sat on the arm beside me. I opened up my camera, snapping a photo of the sleeping girl, but just my luck, I had forgotten to shut my sound off, so the photo was accompanied by a loud shuttering sound.

"Rats," I whispered, quickly tossing my phone into the cushion beside me as the girl over top of me began to stir.

"W-what?" She lifted her head up off of my chest slightly, groggily squinting her eyes in confusion, and I couldn't help but giggle at the red marks of sleep along her cheek.

"Good morning, sweetheart," I pressed a gentle kiss on her forehead, and she smiled warmly, closing her eyes and resting her head back on top of me.

"Good morning, momma."

Momma.. I like that one.

"You comfy?" I laughed softly, and her smile widened, her hands tightening their grip around me and I was quick to reciprocate. She hummed in response, and I let her rest for a little longer, running my hands through her long hair.

Depending on how she's feeling today, I was hoping to get a few things done with her, just to help her get settled in a little more.

For one, I wanted to make sure that her adoption paperwork was settled officially. I know that I signed a few things with Scar, but there was still a few more documents that we needed to go over.

Other than that, I was hoping to get started on some other little things like decorating her room, introducing her to different hobbies and activities to see what she likes. Just some fun and simple things for us to do for the time being. I wanted to make sure that Margo felt safe and comfortable here at home so that when we were ready to dive deep into her recovery, she'd have a safe space to return to.

To kick off my plans for the day, I reached back for my phone and sent Scarlett a text asking about the adoption papers. She read the text fairly quick, which was surprising initially until I glanced at the clock that read 11:30 and it was indeed a Friday afternoon.

Me

Hey Scar :)! Do you think we could meet up soon to finalize the adoption paperwork?

Scar

Yess! I'd love to! Would tonight work? I could be there at like 7pm?

I let out a sign in thought, glancing down at my sleeping daughter. Margo's come a long way in such a short amount of time, and as eager as I was to get this paperwork finalized, I didn't want to ruin her progress by pushing things too quickly.

For most of our time together, it's only been the two of us, so there was no telling how she might react to meeting someone new right now.

It would be wrong for me to set this up without her permission.

"Margo, baby.." I whispered softly, gliding my fingers through her hair, and her eyes slowly fluttered open, humming in response. "I have to ask you a question."

Margo sat up a little quicker than I expected, and I could sense her nervous energy as she started to scoot further from me. But I reached for her hands to keep her close, ignoring the guilt for making her worry.

"It's okay. It's a good thing, I just want to make sure you're comfortable." Her shoulders dropped slightly, but I could tell she was still tense, so I tried to make it quick.

"You know how we talked about making you my daughter officially?" She nodded cautiously in response. "Well, my friend, who's the social worker from the hospital said that she could come over to make it official tonight. But I know that you've been overwhelmed lately with all the new experiences, and I don't want to overwhelm you. It's only if you want to. We can always reschedule it to another day when you feel more comfortable." I rambled on, unable to read the emotion behind her widened eyes.

Oh god, have I scared her away?

I knew I should have waited for this..

"It's okay, hunny. Why don't we just re-"

"You mean we could make it official today?" Her jaw hung slightly agape in surprise, and I let out a sigh of relief but also contentment. I watched as her eyes began to well up with tears, her gaze so full of hope that the girl I had met just under a week ago in the hospital was nearly unrecognizable.

I rubbed my thumbs against the tops of her hands, unable to hold back my own tears now.

"Oh, sweetie. Yes.. Would that be okay with-"

I was unable to finish my question as Margo lunged forward, wrapping her arms tightly around me, and I instantly returned the embrace.

"Please.." she mumbled against my chest, and I nodded my head while silent tears slipped down my cheek.

Every moment I spend with this girl seems to only ever justify my choice to bring her home. I held her close, knowing there was a single thing on this earth that would make me ever let go.

She's my world.

We took our time feeling all of the emotions that came over us, and I made sure to let her know that it was okay to let it out, it was okay to feel. So I held her in my arms, gently rocking us back and forth until the tears ran dry, and she let out a content sigh.

"I love you, sweetie," I whispered gently, and Margo pulled away slightly, revealing her warm smile that brightened her teary eyes.

My heart fluttered at the sight. I felt so honored to be lucky enough to see that side of her, to see her full of innocent joy.

This is the type of feeling that she should have experienced during her childhood years, and as much as I hate that it had to take this long for her to feel this sort of peace, I felt a sense of privilege being the one to guide her through this journey.

I couldn't promise the best parenting skills, as I've never really done this before, but I think that beautiful smile of hers might just be enough to show me the way.

I'd do anything to keep her smiling like that.

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Y'all, if you've never listened to Sleeping At Last, you totally have to check it out! Their music is so beautiful, and I just recently got back into listening to them and I love it.

Sorry for the short chapter, I have a good idea coming up but I didn't think I could fit it in this chapter so I kinda cut it short.

Thanks for reading :)
-Z