Eleven months later …404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7IPMrYs0bd
"Hey, little Nightingale?"404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOYvv1Vjj2e
"Dah! Dee! Doo!"404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6DjtwIXyNb
"Nightingale?"404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRZNpCit4yG
"Uh?" She drops her blocks and looks up.404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxENWtXe2CY
"Do you want to go somewhere? Hm?"404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡI56oFoVX88
She tilts her head, like, woman, have you lost your mind? Of course! She jumps up and falls on her butt. She screams.404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiJnKYuHHIC
I laugh. "Silly, you can't walk yet." I walk over to her and pick her up. "Come on. We need to get your socks and shoes on."404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUvaThnFSoV
She flails her arms with her hands clenched tight on two blocks. I set her down and walk over to her dresser. I open the top drawer and grab a pair of grey socks. I grab her little sandals and walk over to her. She sees what I have and drops the blocks in her hands. She shoots her hands in the air and squeals, doing jazz hands. I roll my eyes and laugh. She giggles.404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIXsvWv3hmt
"Oh, you're too cute." I kneel down and put her socks and shoes on. Then I pick her up and head to the kitchen. Once in the kitchen, I grab my keys and head out the door. I get outside and put Nightingale in her car seat. Then, I shut the door and get in the driver's seat. I start the engine and back out of the driveway. I pull out on the road and head to the park.
I get to the park and park in the parking lot. I turn the engine off and get out. I put my keys in my pocket and open the back door. I unbuckle Nightingale as she squeals in delight. I take her out of her seat and shut the door. Then, I carry her over to a nearby picnic table. I set her on the table and sit down. She squeals.404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwWBhMHPEwv
"You're one happy camper, aren't you? Happy you finally get to come outside in public? Hmm?"404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGXz14nrObv
She squeals again.404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDo30KkovTU
I smile. "Oh, so cute. Who's a cutie? You are." I sigh and look around. "Oh. I wish your father could see you. He'd think you're cute too, I'm sure."404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyjIN2wre2c
She looks up and points behind me. I turn around to see a man walking towards the park. She squeals. She crawls over to the edge of the table and tries sliding to the ground. Instead, she ends up doing a backflip and lands on her butt. She giggles and looks up as the man stops right in front of her. He looks down at her and smiles. She smiles back and giggles.404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbWUg3FlpJt
He bends down and strokes her hair. "You're absolutely beautiful."404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMPW2xdoek8
"Dee!" She puts her hands over his eyes and giggles.404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwI0h0DKg2C
I can't help it. I smile. Suddenly, my phone starts ringing. Nightingale brings her hands down and looks at me, tilting her head to the side. The man looks over at me and gasps. I answer the phone and get up. I walk away a few feet.404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡayIK5Xm1zw
"Hello?" I ask. "Who is this?"404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhHvCenp5ai
"Why, Nikki, how could you not know?"404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSJiI8WLiO9
"Mom, I didn't look at the phone number. I didn't—"404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡh5Hpi7Er5Z
"I found a foster—"404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBxfLCV3Rsv
I groan. "Mom, how many times do I have to tell you? I'm not getting rid of Nightingale. At all. Is that understood?"404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgM02py3gSc
"But her father isn't—"404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtNuAUDzFeJ
"Her father knows what's best for her. Okay? I'm done talking. I've done graduated school, gotten a job, and moved out. I'll be fine."404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ09cRJjOZBM
"But what about college?"404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGyj8FRYvoc
"Dang it, mom!" I hang up and sigh. I let my phone drop to the ground and put my hand on my forehead with my other arm supporting it. "Oh my God."404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡr1lHVJpWUL
I suddenly feel a hand on my shoulder. I turn around to see the man standing behind me.404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjeImtUa0mK
"You alright?"404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjcTbzC45Kg
"I'm fine." I walk over to the table and sit down. I watch as Nightingale plays with the sand. She squeals. I laugh and smile. She looks up at me and claps her hands. I sigh. "Oh, you're so cute."404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡauAbHSEmgf
After an hour, I finally am starting to wonder who the mysterious man is. I look up and see him looking at me.404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPUxwpvCE3I
"Who are you?" I ask.404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXiP2oFoful
"Samual. You don't remember me?"404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAF13pwre7B
"No."404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbATdF3CvAh
"I'm sure Dracula would absolutely love her." He looks at her and back at me. "Has she learned to walk yet?"404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJN3dAwhA0D
"No. She hasn't. She's only eleven months old."404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeoPk8fVRh8
"Well, as soon as she learns to walk, you could let me know and I could take you two to see Dracula."404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmewX2igO2D
"Are you sure that would be a good idea? What if he doesn't recognize me? Or worse, he does but he doesn't want anything to do with me or Nightingale?"404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkDt58MMJC5
"I doubt that second one. The part of him not recognizing you is more reasonable than anything else."404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ98F8HM6HA0
"True. But what about Nightingale? Will he even know who she is? What if he thinks she's someone else? What if—"404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4vzxFNlUgw
"What on earth is your daughter doing?"404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡn6pZugoQ1p
"Playing with sand."404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡm42cBGMz6z
"I don't think she is. It doesn't look like it."404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5nscs0fjFP
I look at Nightingale and gasp. "Nightingale, what are you doing?"404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYURS6g6r27
She looks up at me and falls on her butt. She giggles. She gets up again and takes a step forward. I get up carefully and grab my phone. I come back and quickly pull up snapchat. I pull up my picture screen and start taking a video.404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8I4SbkZZ8B
"Well, look at you. Someone's learning to walk." I back up a few steps and she takes two slow, small steps. She giggles. I smile.404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWc8W9OQqED
"Da! Doo! Da! Dee!" She squeals.
I laugh and smile. "You're so cute."404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSkFHcl3Nwd
Finally she reaches me with a squeal and hugs my leg. I save the video and put my phone away. I pick her up and whirl her around. She squeals. I stop and set her down. She gets up and follows me to the table. I sit down and watch as she climbs up on the seat. She manages to get up on the seat and sit down. She says something and I look at her.404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJqEgy9CmoD
"What did you say?"404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8aA85eTmiB
"Dad! Daddy!"404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1rGGn1dXF3
I gasp. I look up at Samual. "What am I going to do? I can't just go visit him. I have a job."404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3DxZGwgrM6
"Do you have any vacation days?"404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2xGhVlvgWX
"I think I have about a month so far."404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgR2vzT718t
"You could take a few days to a week off so you can go visit him. For her."404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaqzODgCVnu
"She'll be turning one in three days."404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡP23KpEUXtx
"Perfect!"404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzaoWyPigLT
"What's perfect?"404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuoivIyTCCx
"You could take her to see him for her birthday."404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvbLWuPLZeX
I look at Nightingale, who's looking at me with a confused look on her face.404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFqGEBJMlwF
"Mommy?"404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡE5vC6lWQHc
"Oh. Yes. I'm mommy."404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ59pqPPlzTH
"I daddy."404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡH3edcAjyej
"You're daddy?"404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡairX0t7Gj4
"Uh-uh. I daddy."404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzDXi8wLVm6
"Oh. You want daddy."404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6VHZG3VL90
"Yah. I daddy." She looks up at me with a sad look in her eyes.404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrKdcAQZlx6
"Oh, baby. Come here."404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrSwhqcyytF
She climbs into my lap and puts her head against my breast. I can hear her sobbing.404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXODwD1NvqC
"I … daddy," she sobs.404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡs8OK3nYu0z
I stroke her hair. "Oh. It's alright. Shh."404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6Gg8IwghwZ
Samual looks at me sympathetically. "Well, you could call work and ask for a week of vacation."404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIpWJIjc2at
"Why would I do that?"404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsgOKsWIYVD
"It's obvious she wants to see him really badly. You could do that for her first birthday."404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrKcyUgj94O
"But I don't know my way out there."404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnB1MVo1eo6
"I could take you."404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCbOjSWu39K
"But Nightingale needs a car seat."404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTLdxcuFhzd
"You can hold her in your lap and I can take the back roads."404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiCppRJKYQO
"Oh. Fine. For her." I pull out my phone and call my boss.404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUVNovqcXpU
"Hello?"404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡI4cei9KktT
"Oh, um, could I take a week off of work? For my daughter? She'll be turning one in three days and I want to take her to visit her father."404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡL9LBhmCmIZ
"A week? Are you sure?"404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQsaBJ65alJ
"Yes, I'm sure."404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9ibNOXuGHU
"That'll leave you three weeks."404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKLZxvvwWcS
"Yes, I'm aware of that."404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUo3GqiHawf
"Alright. A week it is."404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡn225CxVcBq
"Okay. Thank you."404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡi0EyAbIK96
"Yup. Bye."404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoWqbgh5fZe
"Bye."404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0nlTV2KlnF
I end the call and smile. "It worked."404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzrBXEA02pz
"Seriously? You're kidding."404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2tEjlfpb45
"Yeah, seriously. I got a week off."404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfVCuPBrsp5
He just looks at me.404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJrMQFRS3wS
I smile.404Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyYaLGPBRYb
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