“I’m so proud of you and Rocky. I bet you didn’t have all of this in mind when you had the idea for the center.”
“Thank you, baby. What you think means a lot, and it feels good to make you proud. This is more than me and Rocky could’ve ever imagined when we opened the center. I think our mother and Roman would be proud.”
“Of course, they would be.”
He leaned down to peck my lips before we retraced our footsteps. We were able to slip by Bliss the first time we walked through, but she spotted us on the way back.
“Titi Wose, Unco Wuss,” she squealed as she ran in our direction.
Russell kneeled to her level, and when she reached him, he scooped her up and stood.
“Hey, baby girl,” he greeted before kissing her chubby cheeks.
He held her toward me, and I kissed her cheeks as well.
“Hey, Titi’s baby. Are you behaving today?”
“I behave, Titi,” she responded as she nodded.
As Russell placed her back on her feet, I noticed Oaklyn a few feet away, staring at us with longing in her eyes.
“Bliss, what’s your friend’s name?” I asked.
The mention of her friend made her excited, and she rushed over to Oaklyn, took her hand, and gently pulled her toward us.
“Dis my friend named Oaklyn. Titi, Unco, say hi to my friend.”
We both kneeled to their height, and I spoke first.
“Hi, Oaklyn. I’m Bliss’s auntie. My name is Rose.”
She lifted her tiny hand and waved bashfully.
“I’m Bliss’s Uncle Russ.”
She repeated the same gesture with Russell but gave him a small smile.
“We go play,” Bliss said, whisking Oaklyn away.
We stood and watched them for a few minutes, then headed back to Russell’s office. I couldn’t get Oaklyn’s sad eyes off my mind. I wanted to know why she ended up in foster care, but I was sure Russell didn’t have that kind of information.
“What’s on your mind?” he asked when we made it back to his office.
“Promise you won’t think I’m crazy?”
“Baby, I thought you were crazy a long time ago. I’m sure whatever you’re thinking about won’t make it any worse.”
I smacked my lips and tried to push away from him, but he had a tight hold on my hand.
“Shut up. If I’m crazy, it’s because of you. Do you want to know what I’m thinking about or not?”
“I asked, didn’t I?”
“I want to know more about Oaklyn.”
He shrugged. “All I know is what I told you.”
“Do you think you can find out why she was placed in foster care?”
