A Time to Grow

Break On Me

Addie - 4 years old but almost 5

"Okay Sweet Pea, let's go see what Papa did while we were gone." Peta said as she and Addie returned from having a Mother/Daughter day. She was starting to outgrow some of her clothes so Peta had thought it would be a good excuse to spend the day together.

"Okay Momma, we tell him all about our day too right?" Addie said as she held her mother's hand while she skipped in the sidewalk along side Peta.

"I'm sure he would love that." Peta said smiling at her sweet girl with her head full of dark curls like her fathers.

"I missed Papa. But I had lots fun with you Momma."

"Me too baby." She unlocked the house and let them inside.

"Papa! Papa! We're back!" Addie yelled excitedly. Peta was thrown off by the quietness in the house but figured maybe Maks had spent sometime outside since it was so nice.

"I guess Papa is hiding. Let's go find him." Peta said setting their bags on the floor in the hallway. They began to walk through the house checking the rooms until they reached the patio doors to the backyard.

"I see him!" Addie said excitedly. She pushed the door open and went running for her Papa. Peta followed with a grin but was stopped short when she saw the look on Maks's face. He was pale and she could tell that he had been crying. He wiped his eyes quickly when he saw Addie coming and scooped her up tight.

"I missed you Addie Girl." He said as he buried his face in her curls and breathed deep.

"I missed you too Papa and so did Momma. We have lots of things to tell you about." Addie said and got ready to take off on a ramble of what all they had done before Peta stopped her. Maks looked ready to crack and she knew he wouldn't do it in front of Addie.

"Hey Sweet Pea. I have an idea. Why don't you go in and get all the things we bought and lay them out to show Papa. That way when you tell him about our day you can show him everything too. How does that sound?" She said trying to think of a way to occupy their daughter at least until she could find out what was wrong.

"Ohhh! I like that idea Momma." Addie said as she hopped off Maks's lap.

"Don't shut the door and just lay everything out in the living room okay?" Peta said giving her some rules to make sure she would be okay in the meantime.

"Okay Momma, you make sure Papa doesn't look." Addie said as she headed into the house.

"Handsome." Peta said sitting down next to him and resting her hand on his back. He pulled her into him tightly and just held her for a moment. She could feel his body shaking slightly while she ran her hand up and down his back. "What happened?"

"I just got off the phone with Papa. Baba...." His voice trailed off and Peta's heart sank, she knew what his next words would have been.

"Maks....when?" She said as she let him cling to her. Baba was Maks's grandmother, Addie's great grandmother and pretty much another grandmother to Peta as well. She had accepted her from the very first time Maks brought her to dinner and even through all their break up. The day Maks brought her back, Baba had said, "I knew you were the one. My grandson is just too stubborn sometimes. Welcome back sweetheart."

"Just a little bit ago. Papa said he went to get her for dinner and when he got there she......." He couldn't seem to finish his sentences on the matter and that was okay with Peta. She didn't need him to spell it out. She just wanted to be there for him.

"I'm sorry baby so sorry." Peta said as she griped him a little tighter. His Baba had been his world for so many years and still was. She helped take care of them when they were small and supported them as they grew. He loved her almost like a second mother and Peta knew this was going to be one hard loss on Maks.