A new life for Sofia

Chapter twelve

''Goodmorning, thank you for having me.'' The social worker Jessica had just arrived at the house.

Carina makes her a cup of coffee. ''I would like to take a look at the house first.'' Jessica says.

Maya, Carina and Sofia show her around the house. It's clear that they made a good first impression on Jessica. After the tour, they all take a seat at the kitchen table.

''I can see Sofia already has a lot of stuff. The house looks good. We've had contact with Jeugdzorg. There weren't any family who were willing to take Sofia in.'' Maya and Carina look relieved, Jessica continues. ''There is one person though, who would like to talk to you.'' She looks at Maya and Carina. ''Her name is Iris Kuipers.''

Sofia recognizes this name. ''She used to be my teacher.''

''She contacted Jeugdzorg, because she said that she cares about Sofia, and she wants to speak to her new family. Based on that conversation, she will make a decision about whether or not to apply to be Sofia's guardian. I'm going to give you her number, so you can text her.''

''Juffrouw Iris is a really nice person. I'm sure she is going to like you two.'' Sofia says to Maya and Carina.

''For now, we assume that you will remain the caretakers of Sofia. Have you looked into schools yet?'' Jessica gives them a leaflet with school in the area.

''Thank you. We have looked at schools already. We've contacted view ridge elementary school. They give extra attention to children who join in the middle of the school year. It's also close to the station and the hospital.'' Maya explains to Jessica. ''We have a meeting with the teacher on Monday morning.''

Jessica writes something in Sofia's file. ''Ok, I would like a minute or two alone to talk with Sofia. How about you show me your room again?''

Sofia shows Jessica to her room. Even tough Sofia hasn't even lived here for a week, her room looks like a normal eleven-year-old girl's room. She has a number of toys, and there are already worn clothes on the floor.

They take a seat on Sofia's bed. ''How do you like living with Maya and Carina?'' Jessica asks.

Sofia looks at her guitar, the gift she got from Maya and Carina when they went shopping together. ''They are really nice. I mean, I miss my little sister, and my brother, and also my mother, but for the first time since I was eight, I don't have to take care of myself anymore. I feel loved, even though I have only known them for like five days.''

That was all Jessica needed to hear. They rejoined Maya and Carina again.

''I think you guys are taking great care of Sofia. She feels safe her, and that's very important. Here is Iris's number. You should probably send her a text first, because of the time difference. I will be back for another visit in about two months. If everything goes well by then, we could start looking at adoption.''

Maya, Carina and Sofia thank their social worker.

''I'll send Iris a text, but it went well, didn't it?'' Maya's glad the visit is over.

They spent the rest of the day together, as a family.

The next morning, Maya and Carina go to the clinic again. They dropped Sofia off at the station. A-squad is working, and Vic is on desk duty.

''Al right Carina. You'll get your result in the mail again tonight. Your hCG levels should have at least doubled. If they did, please call the clinic and make an appointment for a month from now.''

Carina and Maya decide to have lunch together. They go to an authentic Italian restaurant. It's Carina's favorite.

They walk in together, talking about the possible result and about school for Sofia.

Antonio is the owner of the restaurant. Andrea used to work for him. Carina has worked a shift for him multiple times, so she knows Antonio well.

''Carina, ciao! Come va?'' Antonio gives Carina two kisses on the cheek. Although Maya knows this is a common way of greeting each other in Italy, she is still a bit uncomfortable with it.

''Mai stata a meglio. Ehi, come va fra te e Gloria?'' Gloria is Antonio's wife. She was like a mother to Andrea when Lucia died.

''Noi stiamo bene, grazie. Salve Maya, how are you?'' The couple had been here a couple of times before. The first time, Antonio had told Maya that Carina was one in a million, and that Maya was lucky to have her. On the second date, Antonio got to know Maya a little bit. The four of them had dinner together once, but Maya didn't feel very comfortable, because although they tried to speak English, they would still have full conversations in Italian.

Antonio showed the couple to their table. They both ordered ravioli and Maya had a bold white wine, while Carina had a soda.

''I got a text from Iris.'' Maya and Carina were sitting in a booth together, enjoying some time alone. ''She asked if we were able to call tomorrow. It's a nine-hour time difference, so if we call around ten, we can talk.'' Maya said.

''I have to be at work at twelve, so that's fine with me.''

The food was amazing and the two really enjoyed spending time together.

''Volete qualcosa da bere?'' Antonio was taking their plates and cleaning their table.

''Do you want anything else?'' Maya asked Carina.

''I don't know. I kind of miss Sofia already. Shall we pay and go to the station? Carina said to Maya. Carina wasn't able to spend as much time with Sofia as Maya this week. She couldn't wait to see her again. Maya also wanted to see Sofia, so they asked for the bill and went to the station.

When they arrived, Andy was there. The team was out on a call, so only Vic, Andy and Sofia were at the station. The couple walked into the beanery. Vic, Andy and Sofia had just finished lunch, and Sofia was telling them a story about a fire she had witnessed once. When she noticed Maya and Carina, she stopped and sprinted towards them. Maya caught her and wrapped her in a big hug.

''Hi bubs, how was it? Were Vic and Andy nice to you?'' Maya asked. The hugs with both moms were already over, and Sofia was already walking towards Andy and Vic to tell them the rest of the story.

''It was really good. I helped clean the engine and they told me about fire safety. And then we made music together and Vic was singing and Andy was dancing and it was really fun.'' Sofia spoke so quickly it was barely understandable. She then continued telling the story. Maya and Carina admired her from afar.

''Sofia is such a nice kid Maya. She's so full of energy and so enthusiastic. If you ever need a babysitter, you can call me'' Andy told Maya.

''Thanks Andy, I will keep that in mind next time me and Carina want to go out.''

''Are you ready to go home, bambina? Why don't you go find your shoes.'' Carina said. Sofia ran around the firehouse, and eventually found her shoes in the gym. They went home and spent the afternoon coloring, playing football and baking cookies together. Carina made ravioli for dinner, and they watched an episode of Friends together.

After Sofia went to bed, Maya and Carina went outside. They sat in a sturdy hammock in the backyard. Carina had her laptop with her. The results of the blood test were in.

''You can open it.'' Maya said to Carina. They were both very nervous. Their heart rate must have been almost 170bpm.

''Ok, here we go bambina.'' Carina opened it. ''1292, that has definitely doubled. Tesoro we're pregnant.''

''Oh my god, I can't believe this. Carina this is fantastic! Congratulations mama.'' Maya said. Her hands were holding Carina's head. She leaned into Carina's embrace. Their lips touched and they shared a passionate kiss

''Congratulazioni, mommy.''