Bad Choices (Hypernaturals 8)

Nakoma

We found Nakoma up in her room, with the little girls arranged around her. She was reading them a story. Laura sat listening intently. Rachel Helena held Laura in her lap which was kind of funny and very cute since Rachel is not that much bigger than Laura. Diana sat with Nakoma, looking over her arm at the book as it was read. Diana can read pretty well for a four-year-old.

"Hi honey. Sorry to interrupt. I need to ask you a quick question." Angel said.

"Sure Mom, what's up?" Nakoma asked brightly.

"Adrian and I want to know if you want to stay here and live in this room? I mean, move out of our apartment and everything, because he talked to me and I have agreed that I like his idea. Adrian?"

"What your mother is saying Nakoma is that I want to formally and legally adopt you as my daughter. Have these three be your official, real-life sisters." I explained.

Nakoma's eyes were all whites around the edges. "For realz? You are not shitting me?"

"One thousand percent for realz. Absolutely no shitting." I assured her

"I would be Nakoma Sagan?" she asked

"If you want to change your name, sure. You don't have to. Up to you. I want to be your dad and have you grow up the rest of the way here. Come home to wash your clothes while you are in college. All of that. Cook with me and be the big sister. We all think of you as our daughter, and we want you with us."

"So... My mom is my mom, not your wife, because you are married to Jessica. Right?"

"Right." I agreed.

"And Jessica would be my...?" Nakoma asked.

Nakoma has never asked why Big Rachel, Helen, and Morgan live here, in addition to Jessica. She has always accepted at face value that there are many people that live in this house. If she ever asked Angel about it, Angel never told me.

"Well, it's like Morgan." I leaned my head in her direction. "She is mom to all of the girls. So is Helen. So is Jessica. You would have a lot of Moms. You are getting ripped off in the dad department as there is only one. Me. You do get two complete sets of grandparents in this deal, however. It is a little weird. Can you deal?"

"I can deal. Diana? What do you think? Can I be your big sister?" Nakoma asked, putting her arm around her.

Diana gave her a hug as an answer and said "You are my sister. I have three sisters." And held up three fingers.

"Ok. Dad." Nakoma said, and stood up, and came to me, and we hugged, and damn it there is a lot of crying going on recently. I prefer this happy kind.

Angel and Morgan joined us in the hug.

Nakoma pulled back eventually. "I want to learn to cook better. And Morgan? Would you teach me about cars? They have this after school thing at school that the boys call 'Powderpuff mechanics' but I don't want that. All they do is show you how to change your oil and stuff. I want to learn how to build a motor or a transmission or something. I want to show those boys they don't know everything about cars."

Morgan squeezed her. "You are a girl after my own heart. Absolutely. You just gave me an idea. You'll be sixteen in a little more than a year. You can get your learner permit soon. How about we find a car that needs a new motor or something. Brakes. Bodywork. The whole thing. You, Jessica and I, because there is no way Jessica will be left out of this, we three will rebuild that car end to end. Make it solid and safe, and so when it is time for you to drive, it is ready? Angel? You OK with us buying Nakoma a car if she has to fix it up?"

Angel bit her lower lip. "I am not ready for her to drive at all. I like the idea of her knowing how to work on her own car. OK. I want to learn too. You rebuilt my Metro. I still don't know anything about it. One caveat. It has to be a safe car. I mean safe. Like a tank safe. Not Mustangs or Camaro's or anything."