['Mario']
Alana and I wipe our feet before we walk in the house. We shut the door behind us then walk into the kitchen to see Emily baking some homemade sugar cookies.
"Ooh, Mommy, can I have the spoon when you're done?" Alana questions, batting her eyelashes at her mother.
Emily places another spoonful of dough on the cookie sheet before she chastises her daughter. "Now, you know that isn't how you get what you want."
Alana looks down at her feet. "I'm sorry, Mommy."
Emily puts the cookies in the oven then gets down to her daughter's height and holds the spoon out to her. "Besides, the puppy face is only good when used on Daddy."
Alana lifts her head up and smiles, nodding. "Otay, Mommy." She runs out the backdoor, spoon in hand.
"So, you taught her the puppy face?" I question as Emily places her used dishes in the sink and runs water over them.
"I taught her the face when she was eighteen months old, and she has yet to stop using it." Emily takes the dishes from the sink and transfers them to the dishwasher. "Jamal thinks I made a mistake teaching her that face but deep down, I know he adores it... especially when it gets her out of trouble."
I look out the window above the sink to see Alana sitting in the gazebo, licking the cookie dough covered spoon. As I keep my gaze fixated on her, I swear I can see what looks like a blurry silhouette of a man; when I blink and look again, the background is empty.
"Would you mind getting me three glasses please?" Emily asks, causing me to turn my head back to her. I walk over to the cabinet where the glasses are and grab three before setting them on the island. "Thank you. The cookies should be done shortly." She walks to the refrigerator and opens it, pulling out a gallon of milk. "You don't have any dairy allergies, do you?"
I shake my head, watching as she pours milk into each of the glasses. "Want me to call Alana in?"
Emily shakes her head. "I'll call her in after they're done and cooled off. I can't have her burning herself again."
"Again?" I repeat, and Emily nods. "How did she burn herself the first time?"
"The first couple times, she touched the iron while I was ironing her father's clothes," Emily explains, putting the milk back where it belongs. "The most recent burn she has is from when she was helping me bake cookies for her class a couple months ago. She tried to grab the cookie sheet while it was still hot. Poor thing, I had to bandage her hand."
I shake my head. "Emily?" Emily looks at me. "I know I've said it multiple times since I've been here, but thank you again for taking me in. If it weren't for you and your family, I don't know-"
"Mario, you don't have to thank me," she cuts me off. "Besides, you're ohana now. Do you know what that means?" I shake my head. "Ohana means family, and family means no one gets left behind or forgotten."
I stare at her in amazement. "Did you just come up with that on the spot?"
"No, it's from Alana's favorite movie, Lilo & Stitch. She never lets me forget the quote," Emily chuckles.
