Mestiza

Chapter One - Maria

"I swear it gets hotter and hotter every year." I complain to nobody in particular, as two helpers struggle to get my suitcases out the door. My yaya--nanny--fusses with my hair, trying to twist it into an intricate hairstyle. My dad looks up from his government issued phone, his nose shiny from sweat. "Too bad you aren't staying for the rainy season, but it does snow in Germany."
"I'm excited to finally see snow, but nothing else."  I mutter, tugging my long black hair from my yaya's grasp.  "Just a ponytail, please. No braids or anything. You know what, I'll do it." I say, running my fingers through my tangles.
"The polvorone is for your mother, and don't forget to bless her and your stepdad with mano po, okay?" My dad said, his fingers still typing away.
"Yes, Tatay." I say, yanking my hair into a ponytail. "Tatay, the cab should be here soon. We should go kasi the traffic."
"Maria, please just wait for me." my dad replies, frowning over his phone. "I'm trying to finish this."
"What are you working on?" I ask, hefting my backpack over my shoulder.
"You know I can't tell you."
"Oh yeah..." I mutter. "Classified information."
My dad snaps his phone case shut, tucking it into the lapel of his suit jacket and brushing breakfast crumbs off his pants. "Tara--let's go--Maria. Do you have everything?
"Opo." I say, standing up and opening the door, my breath catching on the humid air. I've lived here in the Philippines for my entire life, but I'm still not used to the heat, which is especially humid now in August.
I hate the weather...but I love it with all my heart, because it means I'm in the country that I love, surrounded by the friends and family that have always supported me. Now I'm being forced to leave, and I'm not happy about it. Suddenly my mother, who've I've never met in my whole fifteen year of existence, wants custody of me. Being the nice and sharing person my Tatay is, he agreed to send me to live with my mother for a year. An entire year!
In Germany, which is practically on the other side of the world.
With the mother I've never met.
And her new German husband.
With my German stepbrother.
And my Chilean halfsister.
I'm Pinoy, for heaven's sake! I can't live with these people.
"It isn't fair." I mutter, as I walk down the stairs of my apartment building, wiping the sweat from my brow. I hear my Tatay behind me, and I slow down and wait on the landing. He trots down the stairs, and links arms with me. "This is exciting, isn't it?" he asks, as we walk.
"I don't want to go." I say to my dad, my voice cracking a bit.
"Anak, you'll grow so much. I can't wait to see you when you come home." my dad said, as we walk up to the taxi that our helpers are loading my suitcases into.
"I'll miss you." I say as I swing my backpack into the backseat of the cab, burying my face into my dad's shoulder in a long hug.
He hugs me back. "Can you remember all the flight info?"
"Flight number 5670, from Manila International Airport to JFK. Expected departure time is 10:15 am, but you know that nobody is ever on time here." I say, raising an eyebrow.
Tatay smiles. "Maria, I already miss you. I can't believe that you're going to be sixteen when you're coming back. You'll be a grown woman."
"As if." I say, swiping a hand underneath my eyes. I'm not crying though. I don't cry.
"I love you, Tatay!"
"I love you too."