Umbrella

8|Father

Marissa paced back and forth as she waited for the time to come. The sound of her heels was the only sound heard. Last night, she signed and agreed for Michael to be Lauren's primary caretaker knowing he would win no matter what.

She knew that in a matter of hours, Lauren will be taken away from her. Michael allowed for one hour visitation everyday under his supervision expect Saturdays, where the day is strictly set aside for father-daughter time.

"You seem nervous" Michael said with clear concern in his voice. He sat patiently waiting for the results to come in.

Lauren was playing with her doll that Marissa made sure to bring to keep her occupied.

"How do you do it?" Marissa asked.

She stopped pacing and stared at Michael.

"Do what?" He raised an eyebrow.
"Always get what you want"

Michael swallowed.

"Not always." He clarified.

Marissa chuckled sarcastically.

Michael was right. He didn't always get what he wanted because if he did, Marissa would of been his. It pained Michael that she was so naive as to how much he really cared for her.

Now that he's taking Lauren, Marissa is even more unsure if he ever loved her to begin with.

After a few minutes, Marissa sat down next to her daughter and held her tightly.

The room fell silent as they waited for the inevitable.

"Remember our wedding day?" Michael said out of nowhere.

Marissa rolled her eyes and ignored him.

"Remember how you wanted to have a daughter before we got married so she could be our flower girl but I wanted to marry you so bad that I couldn't wait?" Michael chuckled recalling the memory. "When we remarry, we'll finally have our flower girl"

Marissa raised an eyebrow.

"When we remarry?" She restated emphasizing when.
"It'll happen. You're going to fall for me all over again" He said confidently.
"Keep dreaming"

Suddenly, the doors opened and Marissa's heart stopped.

"The result are in way earlier than expected" Jake said.

Behind him, was the doctor who took the samples.

He cleared his throat while opening the letter.

"In the case of Lauren Costello..." he paused as he watched Marissa stand up and kneel in front of her daughter.

"I love you" She told her.
"I love you too mommy" Lauren responded with a big smile that Marissa returned.

Michael watched the scene in front of him and he was now more sure than ever that he was the father.

"Michael Jones, you are the father" the doctor spoke.

At that, Marissa's heart stopped beating and she hugged her daughter as tight as she could as she allowed a tear to escape her eyes.

Michael sat speechless. He already knew the truth but he couldn't believe it was real. He had been a father for four long years without his knowledge.

He shared a child with the woman he loved and that was all he could ever ask for.

"Mommy, why are you crying?" Lauren asked as Marissa continued hugging her.

Marissa could not answer.

After a while, Michael tapped Marissa's shoulder and she backed away from the love of her life.