Piece by Piece

I travelled fifteen hundred miles

For a while, Maya couldn't move. she just stood there, staring at the house right in front of her and, against her own will, images started flooding her mind: of her parents Katy and Kermit bringing a newborn baby Maya home from the hospital to this house - their house; of a toddler Maya taking her first steps right on this porch – her mother proudly cheering her on and her father desperately trying to get the camera to work; of her mother pushing her on a swing set in the backyard; of her father and a little Maya coming up the driveway after he had just picked her up from soccer practice; of herself growing up in the perfect house with the perfect parents – maybe even with a little sibling or a dog. 

Against her will, a small smile spread across Maya's face. It would have been beautiful. But just as quickly as it had come, the smile disappeared again, being replaced by a resigned expression. Because Maya knew that this was all it could ever be: a would have been, images, a fantasy, make-belief. This dream of a perfect family would never happen. There was no changing the past. But the future wasn't quite as set in stone, maybe she could still have a father. Drawing strength from that particular thought, Maya finally got up the courage to lift her hand and knock on the door.

What she didn't expect, however, was to be greeted with the sight of a little five-year-old girl. The blonde's eyes went wide because, at first, she thought she was looking at a picture. This little girl resembled the pictures of her five-year-old self so much. Except for the fact that this girl's eyes were brown instead of blue and the shape of her nose was also a tad different. Other than that, her younger self and this little girl could have been twins.

"Hi," the girl said with a polite smile.

"Hi," Maya replied. "My name is Maya." She didn't really know what else to say. This was not going according to plan.

"That's so cool! That's almost just like my name!" the girl exclaimed while excitedly clapping her hands together. "I'm Kaya!"

"Really cool," Maya agreed and grinned at the bubbly little girl. "Aren't you a little young to be answering the door?"

"I was just on my way to visit my best friend Miley – she lives next-door." Oh, come on, Kaya and Miley? Are you kidding me? Talk about coincidence.

"My best friend's name is Riley," Maya told the girl who immediately started giggling in delight. "Um ... I'm looking for Kermit Hart. Does he live here?"

"Yes, yes he does," the girl said before turning towards the hallway. "Daddy! There's a girl here who wants to talk to you!"

"Coming, sweetheart!" a voice called back while Maya was trying to cover up her shock. No wonder this little girl looked like a mini me; she was her half-sister.

"I gotta go. Bye, Maya."

"It was really nice to meet you, Kaya. Have fun with your friend," Maya said earnestly. Kaya grinned at her and made her way across the sidewalk.

"Hello, how can I help you?" a male voice behind her asked. Maya winced; she still remembered his voice. Slowly, she turned around and looked the man straight in the eye. He just looked at her with a kind smile for a moment or two before a look of recognition crossed his face and his jaw dropped. "Maya?" he asked incredulously.

"Hi, Dad," Maya greeted shyly. She didn't know what to expect. A little part of her had hoped that their reunion would be just like in the movies. She would knock on his door and he would welcome her happily and with open arms. He would give her some plausible and heroic explanation for why he had abandoned her and her mother all those years ago – and yes, a top secret space mission would not have been out of the question. They would rekindle the relationship they had had while she was a little girl – maybe he and her Mom would even get back together and her Mom wouldn't have to work such long hours anymore – and she would finally have her Daddy back. They could be a family again. She could fix it. She knew she could. A little part had held onto that hope.