“How do I look?” Sean turns asking Zachary
“Same bro”
”Dude how do I look?”
“Like a proud daddy, go in there and get your girl” Zachary nudges him into the room to find Megan and her family already there
”Hey baby, hi?” Megan smiles down at her daughter, caressing her face, kissing her face, touching her and kissing her hand ”Mummy is here, mummy is always here” she kisses her, wiping the tears from her eyes..
”And Aunty too” Tonia removes the hair from her face, leaning in to kiss her forehead
”Everyone is here, your family and we love you so much” Megan tells her
Kiki is looking up at her, using her free hand she touches her face, wiping her mother’s tears… Megan kisses her hands ”You will be fine Kiki, you will be okay my baby”
”I- -I sorry mu-mmy fo-r ru-nn-ing ” she tells her mother in a whisper ”I pr-omise I-w-ont be b-ad ag-ain. I won-t make yo-u cry ..I-I- won-t ma-ke you cry mu-mmy I- pro-mise” she sniffs
Megan shakes her head, kissing her face ”You never make me cry, you are my star and moon and my beautiful stars, you are my light, my all, my only… my baby… my Kikina..my beautiful beautiful baby. You are my joy and happiness since day one… and I love you and I promise to love you always… you never make me cry, you make me happy”
”Th-en why ar-e y- you cry-ing?”‘ Kiki sniffs
Megan laughs in her tears ”Because I am happy baby, it’s happy tears… you are okay… you will be fine, that is why I am happy… because here on out, everything would be fine” she kisses her again and again.
Kiki turns to look at the Philips ”Grand-ma”‘ she points to Megan’s mother, Megan follows her hands and nods, then she points at the man holding her, looking at her mother, she looks at Megan.
”Grandpa”‘ Megan sobs, nodding her head ”He is your grandpa””
Ruth and Charles steps forward, Ruth holds Kiki’s hands and kisses it, kissing her face too ”Hey kiddo, we didn’t get to finish our story today back at the house, I promise you when you are back on your feet, I would tell you so many stories… I promise, and I would let you play on my bed the way your mother used to when she was baby”
Kiki smiles at her ”Okay Grand-ma ” she whispers… then she looks at the older man who is reluctant to touch her, because of shame, because of guilt and because he’s afraid that she would hate him, be scared of him… not want him close.
”I am sorry Kikina, grandpa is so so sorry for everything, please” he turns away unable to bear it
”Gran-d-pa?” Kiki whispers
Charles turns, Kiki raises up her hands, reaching out..
With a heart about to explode, Charles reaches for it, kissing it, kissing her face and crying in her hair.. Ruth goes to Megan and grabs her in a hug as she cries, Tonia hugs them both.
”Everything would be fine baby, everything would be just fine” Ruth kisses her daughter as they both watch Charles and kiki.
This was all she wanted, right from the start after it all… this was what she prayed for, to reunite with her family and God has made that happen, it didn’t matter how it happened but God did it. She sobs in her mother’s hands
Kiki suddenly turn to notice Sean and Zachary at the door, she breaks out in a smile
”Uncle… Un-cle Sean?” she whisper squeals.. ”Uncle Sean!!”‘
”Go get your girl man”‘ Zachary nudges him ”Don’t be a puss”
Sean’s knee suddenly weakens, he couldn’t move, not out of fear or because he didn’t want her. But because… realizations suddenly dawns on him…
The happiness enveloped him so much that he was afraid that if he doesn’t control it, it would scare her, scare him too.
Kiki was his daughter, his own and he could not still believe it.
The love for this girl doubled… it tripled… in fact it quadrupled. His chest hurts, he couldn’t breath, he holds his chest, staggering back.
”You okay?” Zachary steadies him
“Sean are you okay?” Megan asks from her corner
God please, don’t let him do what I feared the most, don’t let him reject her and run the other way…don’t let fear of responsibility refuse him from accepting her finally. I don’t want his money… I don’t want anything… I just want him to accept her as his daughter, acknowledge her as his… let her know that she has a father… who would be there for her… that is all God.
Don’t bring my fears to a reality Lord, please.
Megan closes her eyes, turning away.
She had to protect Kiki from this pain that is why she had to keep it all a secret so it never has to go sideways, God don’t let it go sideways today..
Okay, if he doesn’t want to accept her as his, let him go, will him to turn around and go and never come back. Don’t let Kiki love a father who doesn’t want her… dear lord… don’t do it for me, do it for her…
Megan sobs silently as she prays
”Sean are you okay?”
Sean turns to Zachary “Yes, for the first time in my life I am… never have been better… this joy is too much… too much I became dizzy from it… I keep asking myself over and over again since the news how possibly but it is clear, glaring clear that Kiki is undoubtedly my own, my daughter, MY GIRL, and I don’t know whether to scream, jump or shout at the mountain top and-”
“Uncle- Sean?” Kiki whispers again, she was calling him, why doesn’t the come, he is her friend, her only friend… why doesn’t he come to hold her hand and kiss her head like everyone else..
She has her mother here, her Aunty… and now her grandma who smells of cookies, she even gave her one tonight while reading a story, and a grandfather whose eyes were so sad… but he says he is sorry , sorry for what? For shouting at her mother? She forgives him. He says he didn’t mean it, and mummy says when someone says they are sorry one should forgive.
She is happy that finally, her mother is happy, no more tears her mummy promised her, no more tears and she wouldn’t ever make her mummy sad, ever. She has her grandparents now too, she always prays to God when her mother tells her to pray before going to bed always, they hold hands and when her mummy tells her to tell God what she wants… she had always prayed that he makes her mother happy, bring back her grandparents… and give her a new daddy.
Her mummy says God always answers prayers, and that if she believes in him the way she believes in Santa Claus always dropping gifts under the Christmas tree at Christmas, than that God will drop down blessings for her too..in the folds of what she wants and had asked …
Now she believes what her mother says, that God loves them…because if he didn’t, he wouldn’t have answered her prayers..but he has, he has, her mother says she is happy. He answered that.
Her grandparents are back and here. He answered that… Well, he hasn’t answered her prayer about getting a new daddy. But that is fine, he answered two out of three. But he gave her a friend, he gave her Uncle Sean. So she was okay… to her, God has answered all her prayers, even if she doesn’t have a daddy.. Uncle Sean was her friend, and friends stay together… forever, isn’t that what her mummy used to stay? But why doesn’t he come to ask her how she is, why doesn’t he come.
“Uncle… Sean?”
”You talk too much Bro, don’t keep the child waiting, else I would hurt you”‘
Sean laughs going to the bed, they move for him as he takes her hand, “Hey Princess?” Sean wipes his eyes ”I am here… I am here, and I am not going anywhere” he kisses her hands, then her forehead, then her face, then her nose , her eyes, he is crying, he is really crying as he holds her to himself
Megan turns to see him, Tonia is smiling in her tears, there is no dry eye in the room, not even Zachary’s
”I swear Sean, you make a grown ass man cry. I hate you” Zachary cleans his eyes
”Why –a re you crying Uncle Sean’?” Kiki was curious … “Mummy said I will be fine”
”Yes, Mummy is always right, I am crying because… finally I get to meet you… I get to meet MY GIRL!!
I have to tell you something Kikina… and it might not make sense but it is the truth. I am your daddy Kiki, I am your daddy… I didn’t go to heaven, I didn’t go to heaven… I am your daddy Kiki and you are my beautiful beautiful baby girl, my child, mine..mine!!” He uses her hands to place on his chest
”And I promise to love you today, tomorrow and always I promise to be there for you when you need me and when you don’t. I promise to do right by you my darling… I promise to take you on piggy rides, let you play with my face with your mummy’s makeup, and do so many high-fives if you want, I will buy you your favorite ball, get you a thousand castles, take you to Disneyland too…. I will be your best friend forever Kikina O”Conner… you are my daughter, my princess, my baby girl… and I swear to God I loved you before knowing you were mine and i love you more knowing you are mine… you are my MY GIRL!!” he cries into her face, kissing her again as every other person is sniffing the room .
Kiki is staring at him, a curious frown distorts her cute face ”Uncle Sean, my da-daddy?”
He nods his head “And I am so sorry so sorry for not coming sooner, not knowing sooner, I am your father kiki… a proud father!!”
She looks at her mother, her Aunt… the Philips, then back to her mother, her eyes questioning
”Yes baby, he is your father” Megan comes close to them, touching her face “I am sorry I lied to you”
But Kiki doesn’t say anything, she is just staring at them.
The Doctor who had come in during it all suddenly speaks ”She is a child, it might take a while for it all to digest. Left to me I would have asked that you all wait to give her all this news until she is well and fully back on her feet, it’s a miracle she is back to self after the operation, and can speak, patients usually take longer to adjust but… I don’t know what to say. It’s a miracle… but you don’t need to crowd her with the news… let her rest.”
Kiki doesn’t say anything, my daddy!! Uncle Sean my daddy. She is looking at her mother nodding her head, her aunt crying, even Uncle Sean’s weird friend is crying. Her grandparents too… then back at him…my daddy!!!
My daddy!!!
She watches them get up, her mother and the rest kiss her, everyone is leaving, even him…
Her daddy!!
GOD ANSWERED HER, GOD HAD ALWAYS GIVEN HER HER FINAL WISH. THE ONE SHE WISHED MORE ON HER BIRTHDAY AS SHE WISHED OVER HER CAKE…
”I wish that God gives me a daddy more than anything” She had crossed her hands, closed her eyes and had wished it.
She has a daddy, she has a daddy… God had answered her prayers all along.. and she didn’t know. Mummy was right… God is good. God answers prayers.
He does, He did answer her. She had a daddy all along…
She reaches out as Sean gets up the bed and pulls his hands..
Sean turns as her hands grabs him. “Daddy!!!” she breaths, her eyes pooling, her lips shaking… ”Daddy. MY DADDY!!”
Sean’s heart literally explodes as he rushes to hold her, pulling her small body to him as he hugs her, rocking her, kissing her all over her face.
Everyone turns… and the tears start all over again.
*****
”Mum, is dad there with you?” Sean is speaking over the phone “Okay, I have something I want to tell you and I want you both to book the next flight down, I want to introduce you both to someone who is going to be the most important person in my life” he nods his head ”My daughter, my daughter, her name is Kikina” he nods his head “Yes..yes. I swear when you both come I will tell you, I will explain it… but you have to come… you have to see her, blue eyes, amazing smile, she is beautiful and smart and oh God mum, dad… my daughter, my baby girl… I am a father” he laughs ”I am a father ”
