My Father's Daughter, Book II (Completed)

Chapter 2. Paper Flowers

AIZAWA

Age 13

"Come on Shota, I want to show you something." Inessa giggled taking both of my hands in hers.

She hoisted me to my feet with surprising strength. Then again anything Inessa said or did always managed to surprise me.

"What is it?" I asked leaving our fort behind. She shook her head and clamped her lips closed as she walked to the edge of the roof where we spent most of our time.

"Close your eyes." She spoke softly. Her voice was light like the tinkling of silver bells.

Doing as she asked, my eyes closed. I hummed to myself unsure of what was going to happen next.

"Hold out your hands."

She placed something soft into my waiting palms.

"Okay open your eyes."

Blinking from the evening sun shining in my eyes, I looked down into my hands and saw a paper flower. It was red as a rose and just as soft. It was made of tissue paper, but looked almost real.

"What's this for?" I asked studying the flower in my hands.

"It is a tradition. My mother used to tell me back home we would release flower petals into the wind when we find our special person, and those petals would find that special person and they would know that they were loved. Before my mother died she taught me how to fold paper tissue into flowers." Inessa smiled sweetly.

My heart swelled for her. I hadn't known her for very long, but it was in this moment I knew that I found my special person.

"Should I rip it into petals?" I asked dubiously glancing at the delicate paper flower.

"It would carry in the wind better." She pursed her lips. She clearly hadn't thought this out completely, and had worked hard on making the perfect flower.

"Close your eyes so you don't have to see." I suggested.

"But I want to see where your petals go." She pouted.

I resisted the urge to smile at her cuteness. She had no idea that my petals would have just found her anyway.

"Do you trust me?" I asked.

"I do." She nodded slowly.

"Then close your eyes."

She did as I asked and I reached out to her placing the flower back into her hand at her side. Our fingers brushed together sending little volts of electricity through my hand.

Her golden eyes flew open and held my gaze. At first her eyes were confused and hurt.

"I know where my petals would go." I spoke softly, closing her hand around the paper flower.

A slow smile spread across her beautiful face.

"Me too." She clutched her hand to her chest.

AIZAWA
Present

I had been staring at this letter for ages. It seemed like the world had stopped spinning and yet everything around me was falling into chaos.

Alina, is....mine. She's mine. She's ours?

Counting again, I did the math, and it would check out, if this were true. It had to be true. Inessa wouldn't lie about something like this. I had the proof right in front of me. Unable to fully wrap my head around this, I read the letter again.