Next To You

I felt like the wind was knocked out of me, as I struggled to find the words to say.
"I know she has your smile." Harry says, as he slowly takes a step towards me. "I know she has my last name. I know you named her after our grandmother's. Adelina after mine, and Rose after yours."
I was tempted to take a step back, when I realized how close he'd gotten.
"If you knew all of this, why didn't you show up sooner?" My voice coming out lower than I expected.
"I had no choice."
I stared at him in disbelief. "You keep saying that. What did you not have a choice in, Harry? What could've been more important than getting to know your own daughter, hm? Because I can promise you I can't think of anything better than her. Plus, it kills me because she has your eyes. Every time, I look into her eyes I'm reminded that I'm raising her without you."
"I know, Mel. Believe me, I know. This isn't the place to explain everything to you." He let out a deep breath, composing himself back into the confident stance he always has. "Tomorrow. I'll explain everything tomorrow. I'll let you know exactly what has happened in the past five years. I'll be honest in everything. Just know, I haven't stopped thinking about you. Nor have I stopped wondering what Adelina's like. Please, know that."
I studied him carefully. My eyes searching his for anything other than the desperate gleam they so plainly wore.
I let out a breath, "Fine. But, the second I don't believe you. You're done. Plus, Addie is going shopping with my mother tomorrow. So, I'm free and, you'll be able to meet her before you leave."
He nods his head.
"Why didn't you want my mom to tell me about her?" He asks after a small pause.
I shrugged, "Figured if you were done with me, you would feel like I got pregnant on purpose, or it was a lie. I didn't think it was her job to tell you. I did try calling you when I found out, but you changed your number." I trailed off, and looked down at the ground. "How did you find out, anyway?"
He lets out a deep breath, "That's for tomorrow. It wasn't from my mum, though."
I nod, and was about to reply when the phone in my hand starts to ring. When I see my dad's contact picture, I immediately answer it.
"Hello?"
"Mommy! Papa let me call you!" Addie practically screams into the phone.
I instantly smile, "He did? Why aren't you in bed, young lady? It's past your bedtime."
I glanced up at Harry, to find him intently watching me.
"Is that her?" He pointed to the phone pressed against my ear.
I nodded, "Do you want to hear her?" I asked cupping the phone away from my mouth.
He nods eagerly, and closes the space between us. I pull my phone back, and put the call on speaker.
"Addie, why aren't you in bed?" I repeat.
She lets out a humming sound, which she always does when she's debating if she should tell the truth or not.
"Well, papa let me have ice cream after dinner, and then I made him watch Tangled with me. But, now I miss you so I can't sleep."
I smiled as I stared into the ocean, forgetting about the person next to me.
"I missed you too, bug. I'll be home soon, and I'll give you cuddles and kisses. Sound good?"
"Yes! Oh, hold on, Papa wants to talk to you. I'll see you soon, mommy! I love you sooooo much." She blows a kiss into the phone, before handing it over to my dad.
"She's just as energetic as you were when you were four." he let's out a yawn. "I'm too old for it now. But, be safe Meli. Make sure you're mom doesn't get you lost again."
"I'll make sure of it. Addie, will fall asleep soon. She can never make it past midnight. We'll be home, soon."
He lets out another yawn, "We'll be waiting. Bye, honey."
"Bye dad."
Once, I hung up I looked over at Harry. His eyes focused on the ground infront of him.
"We made her." He looks up at me. "Regardless of what you think, it was out of love. She's a part of that. A part of us. Wow."
He looked as if everything was just now processing inside his mind.
"She asks about you, a lot. About where you are. Why you aren't there. I tell her you're on vacation. That you'll be back one day. She seems satisfied, but I know she wonders. In fact, she says her eyes are her favorite because they're like her daddy's."
He lets out a small smile, "All I want is to be apart of her life. If you realize you can never forgive me, fine. I'll live. But, please Mel, let me be apart of her life."
"I would never take her away from you." I furrowed my eyebrows at him. "You're the only thing, that little girl asks for. We'll start off with supervised visits, deal?"
He nods, "Deal. Just give me your address, and we'll go from there."
I wrote down my address in his notes on his phone, not knowing what tomorrow had in store.

Notes