Falling Together

I Wish You Could Have Met Her

Maisie POV

Chief Aulelei has spent the whole afternoon teaching me about Samoan culture. All this time I had Samoan blood in my veins and never really understood what it meant to be one of its people. Whenever I thought of Samoa, I thought of how underdeveloped the land was. There were no skyscrapers or theaters like there were in New York. I didn't see Samoa for what it was. But now?

I'm starting too.

I wish I had come to live in Samoa earlier. Taken advantage of the love they show their neighbors. If I had grown up here with my dad so many things could have been different. Looking around at the way the cultural center thrives and functioned together made me wish I was a part of their family.

If I were, I would know exactly how I fit in amongst them and what I needed to do. I would have unconditional love and a support system like no other. I had those things with my dad and brother, but here.. watching them. It just felt like so much more.

No matter how much I learned, a part of me felt like I would always be an outsider. Something inside of me would never be able to feel a love and connection as deep as the one they all have.

If I had grown up here, everything would be different.

When we were done at the cultural center we said our goodbyes and promised to come back again soon. I was happy that Dax brought me here, but I also very much wanted to go home now. I felt drained. I just wanted to go back to sleep. I look over at smiling Dax and remind myself that I'm doing this because we might be able to spend much time together as I start work for the Youth Center. Knowing that I put on a smile and take another bite of my pork bun. We had taken some to go after we left the cultural center and I couldn't get enough of them. They were pretty delicious.

"Where are we going now?" I ask through another mouthful.

"Togitogiga Waterfall."

Hmm... a waterfall would be nice and relaxing. I nod and look back out the window as he drives. I feed him pieces of food as he drives and we continue in a comfortable silence.

When we finally park we hike down a little bit before I hear the rushing of water in the distance. A sign points us toward the waterfall, and also says there is a recreational area on the other side. We turn for the water and I can't wait to see what beautiful piece of Samoa I'm about to see now.

A small but beautiful waterfall spills down into a small pool of water In front of us. It's breathtaking. It feels almost unreal that something like this exists. In New York we would be surprised to see grass because almost everything was covered in pavement or buildings. But here.. it's natural beauty just took your breath away. I climb up the side of the first pool of water to get to the next small waterfall and pool above it.

"Is it ok to swim?" I ask.

"Yeah. This is Samoa." Dax chuckles. "You can swim just about anywhere."

"True. I guess it's not like back home at all."

I kicks off my shoes and strip off my jeans till I'm standing in my shirt and underwear. I'm very careful not to lift my arms or show any scars so instead of jumping in I kneel down and slide gently into the water. It's not freezing but rather very refreshing. I sigh and lean my head back in the water to soak it through. When I look back up Dax is staring at me.

"What?" I say afraid he just can't look at me the same since he saw my scars this morning.

"Nothing it's just.." He says running a hand through his hair.

"Just what?" I can feel myself holding my breath.

"You're just really beautiful Maisie." He says smiling. I can't help it. I blush violently and watch as Dax let's out a heavy laugh. "Don't be embarrassed. It's true. The goddess of beauty has nothing on my girl."

I watch as he strips down to his boxers and slides down the bank of the pool of water to swim over to me. . He is watching me and smiling like a crazy person. It makes me giggle.

"So, how did you like it?" He asks as he stands in front of me. He is wearing a smirk on his face and I can tell it's because he knows I'm staring at him. Unashamedly I might add.

"I loved it. I wish I had gone sooner. He was funny too. I can see what him and my dad get along so well." I say smiling back at him.

"He knew my mom too."

DAX

I can feel my heart pounding a little in my chest as I talk about it. Maisie knows my mother passed away. She doesn't know that it was my fault. She doesn't know her death was what changed me and gave me PTSD.

I knew I would eventually tell her everything. I trusted Maisie completely, but it was definitely something I had to prepare mentally for. So for now, I'd start small.

"My mom and I came to Samoa when I was around 5. We had come here as a vacation to escape my dad. He was an abusive guy. Never really treated either of us right. When we got here we had the time of our lives. I had never seen my mom smile so much in my life."

"The day before we were supposed to go back to the states I told my mom I didn't want to. I asked if we could stay here forever. She laughed and just hugged me really tight. Neither of us wanted to go home. She looked at me and said 'tell you what. If I can find a job by the end of the day.. we will stay here forever.'" I say smiling at the memory.

Maisie is smiling back at me and inches closer as I speak, wrapping her arms around my neck.

"She ended up getting a job at the hotel we were staying at. They were really kind to us the whole time and when my mom asked if they were hiring for cleaning ladies they said yes. She was employed by the end of the day. We went back to the states to get our things. Then we were right back here."

"One of the first things we did was go to the cultural center. A lot of people here speak English but my mom thought it was important for us to go and at least understand the culture so we could respect our neighbors. I sat there and watched like a little kid just like you did." I laughed.

Maisie giggles and pecks my lips. "I'm glad you took me."

"I wish you could have met her." I say thinking of how much she really would have liked Maisie. "My mom always thought Noah was a complete goof. He would joke around and tell her if she wanted a calmer version of him that she should meet his sister. She would joke and say that she was going to ask Lotto to switch you guys to give her a break."

"That sounds like Noah." She says rolling her eyes. I started to get a bit overwhelmed as we talked about her. I wanted to cry like I do every time I'm forced to remember why I can't have more memories like those. "Hey. Let's just float for a while ok?" She says catching on to my drop in mood. I smile and nod. Kissing her again gently.

For the next hour or two we splashed around and just enjoyed the time we had together. There was no more talk about my mom, or the wishes that we had that things never happened.