At First Glance- A Marina Love Story

Chapter 41

Carina and Maya spent two more blissful days together celebrating the holidays. They visited Maya's mother and started working towards building a solid relationship with her. Maya and her mother had never been close, mainly because her father never allowed it. However, now that he was gone, Maya was willing to give it a try. She knew that her mother was broken, just like her...

On their afternoon visit, the three women spent some time reflecting on Maya's childhood. Katherine brought out a large and dusty photo-album. It was clear that it had not been opened in many years. On the front of the album, "1988-1995" could be seen in faint lettering.

"This is filled with pictures from Maya's birth up until Mason's 3rd birthday," Katherine shared as she flipped open to the first page.

Maya paused as she looked at the image of her mother in a hospital bed holding her as a newborn. Her father was kneeling beside the bed with a large grin across his face. Katherine noticed that her daughter was studying the image closely.

"Things weren't always bad, you know," she said. Katherine flipped the album to the next page and smiled at the photo of Lane asleep on the couch with Maya on her chest.

Carina studied Maya's facial expression as she touched her hand to the image. She noticed that she was tense. The Italian placed her hand on her thigh and squeezed it, she wanted to let Maya know that she was there for her.

"Why have I never seen these before?" Maya asked. She moved on to the next page. This image was a grinning Maya in her playpen looking up at the camera. Carina smiled when she noticed that even baby Maya had the same piercing blue eyes that she possessed today.

"I hid the album away for a long time. It made me sad to think about how good things used to be. 1995 is right around when everything changed. I don't remember taking many photos at all after that," Katherine shared. She walked away from the album to grab a box of tissues. She had started to get emotional, but found the strength to continue. "Your dad lost his job around that time and I had to go to work. I think he felt like a failure. When I started to make a good amount of money, he got jealous. From that point on he just lost control of his emotions. He wanted so much for you and Mason. I know that he went about it in the wrong way, but he did love you."

"It didn't feel like it," Maya said. She slammed the album closed and sat back into the deep sofa. She couldn't bear to look at any more of the "happy" memories.

Katherine tried to justify his actions, "His dad was hard on him, too. I think he saw it as tough love. I am not trying to make excuses for him, because I know the amount of pain he put us all through. Any time I mentioned going to therapy, he would spiral and lose control. I eventually stopped trying to fight that battle."

Maya sat silently and closed her eyes. She hadn't forgotten the pleasant times with her father, but she also had certainly not forgotten the terrible ones either. Carina moved closer to her and rubbed her thighs as a way to try and calm her down.

"Carina, did you have a nice childhood?" Katherine asked after a few moments of silence?

The brunette scoffed at the question. "Yes and no," she shared. "Maya and I have actually bonded over our turbulent pasts. My mama was wonderful and I have nothing but beautiful memories of her. My papa, not so much."

"I'm sorry to hear that," Katherine said quietly. "Do you have any siblings?"

"I do!" she said in a cheery voice. "I actually moved to Seattle to be closer to my younger brother, Andrea. He also works at the hospital with me. We are very close."

"Maya and Mason were so close growing up. Have you heard from him, sweetie?" Maya's mom asked.

Maya reopened her eyes and spoke, "No, I tried finding him after dad died, but I haven't had any luck."