Aurelia grew up without much love from her mother, and she never thought her real dad would ever come into her life. But then, he did. Now, she wonders if it's too late for him to rescue her from the darkness her parents left her in, or if there's s...
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Seeing my daughter standing in front of me after so many years, I felt my eyes well up with tears of both joy and sorrow. I needed to get my act together, to compose myself in her presence. I remembered her only as almost a newborn, and my heart crushed inside me at the realization of all the time I had missed with her. I'm lost for words; I have no idea what she must have gone through without a dad to guide her through life's challenges. All I wanted was to hug her tightly, to reassure her that I am here now, but I knew I couldn't do that just yet. She doesn't know me yet, and it's going to take some time for her to trust me.
As I looked at her from head to toe, taking in all that I had missed, she looked so thin, almost like she wasn't eating. She appeared pale, exhausted, and completely broken. It made me wonder how this happened and who could have done this to her. Surely, Leandra, my ex-wife, wouldn't have treated her that way. Or perhaps she had other problems at school. What if she was getting bullied or struggling with an eating disorder?
All these questions were popping up one after the other, but I couldn't bring myself to ask something so intimate just yet.
When Cristían stepped beside me, I noticed Aurelia's eyes widen in shock, and then she started coughing uncontrollably. I realized that she must have been struck by the uncanny resemblance between Cristían and herself. They were like mirror images, sharing the same eye color, hair color, and nose, among other features.
All my children were blessed with good genes from both my side and my ex-wife's side, but only two of my five children look exactly like me, and that's Cristían and Aurelia. While Fernando was the perfect blend of both me and Leandra, Lorenzo and Ramón took after their mother in appearance.
We stood there looking at each other in awkward silence, which was broken by the head of the foster home, who said in a fake high-pitched voice, "Sweetheart, don't be shy, it's your family," before leaving us to talk.
"Before we go, can I go to the hospital?" she said quietly, not expecting me to allow it, which made me feel disappointed that she thinks that about me, so I decided to surprise her with my answer.
"Of course we can, just tell me which hospital?"
And just like I had thought it would be, she lifted her face and looked at me in surprise.
Both me and Cristían waited in the car for her to come because she still had something to discuss with Mrs. Brown.
"She looks insanely unhealthy and unhappy, Papa," Cristían said as we both sat there waiting.
"I know."
"What do you think happened? Do you think that Mama didn't have enough money to raise her, or do you think she has an eating disorder or-."
"Stop it. I know I'm concerned too, but we need to control ourselves. We can't just bombard her with so many personal questions."
