Page 39 of The Arrival
“Perfect!” she says. “You picked that up quickly. I tried this with Nino yesterday afternoon and he couldn’t figure it out… but I remember when Giovanni taught him how to tie his shoes. It took Nino a long time to get the hang of it. Same brain function, I guess.”
“May I try the other side?” Sydney asks, his pale sea-green eyes earnest. He’s sitting across from them with his legs folded against the fuzzy area rug.
“Of course,” Haruka says.
“Do you think you’ve picked it up?” Cellina asks. “You watched me try to teach Nino yesterday, too.”
He nods. “I think so…”
Haruka sets his palms at Nami’s core. She’s preoccupied with a plush gray elephant as she sits in the hollow of his folded legs. The stuffed animal is a new gift from her Auntie Cici, and they’ve barely been able to wrestle it away from her.
“Nami,” Haruka says softly. “Will you go sit with Sydney? You can take Elle with you.” He sets the little girl upright on her chubby but firm legs. He holds her waist as she totters forward with the soft elephant tight in her grip. The purple-and-white polka dot romper she’s wearing gives her freedom to move, while also keeping her comfortable in the humid late-summer air.
Soon, he lets go of her waist and she moves independently. She does this lately—takes a few confident steps before falling down in a heap. Haruka is waiting for it to happen again, knowing that the elephant will soften the impact of her tumble.
But she doesn’t fall this time. His eyes widen at her assured steps, slow and steady, as she makes it into Sydney’s arms.
“She didn’t fall!” Cellina announces, clapping her hands.
Sydney hugs her tightly as he grins. “Nami-chan sugoi desu ne.”
Haruka leans back against his palms, reveling in the excitement—Sydney’s and Cellina’s unfiltered delight and Nami’s happy, contented smile. He loves these moments, which seem to settle upon him daily, as if he’s almost constantly being drenched in a powerful ray of light and love.
This life, and this family—how much has he yearned for this, deep down? Perhaps always. Since he was a child and since his first family was so cruelly snatched away from him, leaving him hollowed.
Life can be harsh and unfair. Haruka knows this very well. He can never forget it, nor does he want to. But life has another side. Another filter where, once he opened himself to its possibilities, his world slowly became awash with color, warmth and hope once more. Not just hope but promise. The promise of wonderful moments, like this. Of security and companionship. Peace and joy.
If the turbulent waves of life descend upon him again someday, Haruka wants to weather the storm. He doesn’t want to drown in it like he did in the past—letting the violet waves pull him down into the darkness. Sinking him in the dreary depths and willingly submitting to his fate. He wants to fight for the perception shift. To bask in the ray of light and love once more, because he now knows of their inherent goodness.
As Sydney manipulates her hair, Nami looks up, her beautiful golden-sunset eyes landing directly on Haruka. “Tosan, Papa here?”
Haruka smiles. “He is.”
“Oh man,” Cellina says, shaking her head. “Nino is going to be mad that he missed her first tumble-free walk.”
“We’ll surprise him,” Haruka says. A few moments later, Nino appears in the doorway to the nursery, handsomely dressed in business-casual attire.
“Papa!”
“Hey, how’s—”
“Stop,” Haruka commands, holding up a hand. “Stay there.” He shifts his gaze to Nami, seated in front of Sydney as he finishes French-braiding the opposite side of her hair. “Sweetheart, go to Papa, okay?”
Swiftly twisting the pearly-white bauble at the end of her strands, Sydney then grabs her core and helps her stand upright. In the doorway, Nino shifts to his knees. “Ciao, topolina. Are you going to walk to me?”
With elephant in hand, she steps forward. One foot after the other in a careful, focused movement, her eyes steady on her target. Nino’s amber eyes grow brighter, his expression jubilant as she draws nearer, unwavering. Not falling at all. When she finally reaches him, he scoops her up as he stands. The movement makes Nami laugh and smile. Cellina claps once more and Sydney praises her in Japanese.
“Ahh, holy shit—”
“Nino.” Haruka frowns in a smirk, shaking his head.
“Sorry!” He grins, bouncing her against his hip. “You’re amazing, Nami! My smart girl.”
Cellina sighs. “Knowing your brother, I think our kids will come out of my womb shouting expletives.”
“Without a doubt,” Nino says, joining their small circle on the carpet and setting Nami in the fold of his legs. “She’s already starting to repeat the things we say. I try to be careful, but I forget.”
“If she starts swearing,” Cellina says, “one hundred percent it’s because of you, based on the rest of this household.”
