At the end of the week, before leaving Philadelphia, I paid a visit to my parents.
Aside from them both being completely gray, they hadn’t changed much since the last time I’d seen them during the Christmas holidays six years ago. The healthy diet they adhered to seemed to be working. They looked great. My father’s olive complexion was smooth and unwrinkled, and my mother’s coffee-colored skin contrasted well with her glistening silver hair. To keep fit, my father walked five miles a day and my mother practiced yoga at a senior center. In their mid-sixties, they both maintained full-time jobs, determined not to retire or collect social security until they reached age seventy.
Recalling my last visit home put a bad taste in my mouth. Zoe was three years old at the time and I wanted her to experience winter weather, particularly snow. I also wanted her to get to know her step-grandparents, but they were so lukewarm toward Zoe, Sasha felt offended. She vowed never to visit them again and I supported her decision and stayed away as well.
But here I was, standing in their living room, and telling them I had some important news to share.
“I think you both should sit down,” I suggested.
“If this is bad news, I’d rather take it standing,” my father grumbled, stubbornly folding his arms as he stood near the staircase, as if prepared to bolt up the stairs if I said something he didn’t want to hear.
My mother took a seat on the sofa. “What’s this about, Malik? Does it have something to do with Elle calling last week to get your number? And now you turn up…what a coincidence. Have you two decided to get back together?”
“It’s a little late for that,” my father chimed in. “She’s married with a child and you’re married with a stepchild.”
“Believe me, Elle and I are not having an affair,” I said.
My mother peered at me through the tortoise shell glasses that were perched on her nose. “When are you and Sasha going to have a child? Your father and I aren’t getting any younger, and we’d like to experience being grandparents before we depart this Earth.”
“That’s exactly what I want to talk to you about.”
“Is Sasha pregnant?” my dad asked hopefully.
“No, but I wanted to tell you that you’re already grandparents. Elle’s son, Phoenix, is also my son.”
“What are you saying, Malik?” My father gazed at me confusedly.
My mother briskly patted the empty space next to her. “You’d better sit down, Winston.”
Taking her advice, my father flopped down next to her. Sitting together, my parents held hands as they stared at me, waiting for me to provide an explanation for my earth-shattering news.
“Elle got pregnant around the time that I overdosed. When I was in prison…”
At the word, prison, my mother breathed out a loud sigh, one hand fretfully twisting a lock of her silvery hair.
“Elle came to see me when she was seven months pregnant and told me she was getting married. I let her talk me into signing over my rights to our child.”
My father reared back and gave me a look of disdain. “Why would you do something like that, son?”
“Under the circumstances, I felt like I was doing what was best for the baby.”
My mother pulled off her eyeglasses, something she did when she was upset. “So, let me get this straight…we’ve been grandparents all these years, with a grandchild who lived nearby, and you didn’t think we had a right to know?”
She pressed four fingers against her forehead and rubbed circularly. “This can’t be true. All these years we’ve been yearning for a grandchild and we had one all along. Yet we weren’t even allowed to meet him. How old is the child—about eleven or twelve?”
“He’s thirteen.”
She dropped her head in her hand briefly and when she looked back up, there was anger in her eyes. “You waited until the child was practically grown before you decided to tell us that he existed.” She gawked at me and then turned her incredulous gaze toward my father. “Can you believe this, Winston?”
“No, Ruth Ann, I cannot believe that our son would deprive us the right to be grandparents for all these years.” He leaned forward. “Let me make sure I have a clear understanding of all this. You let another man raise your son while you were off raising someone else’s daughter. What kind of cockamamy nonsense is this, Malik?”
“Mom! Dad! I came to Philly to spend time with my son—to officially meet him for the first time. But he’s not doing well right now, and I—”
“What do you mean he’s not doing well? What’s wrong? Is he sick?”
“It’s a long story, but he only recently found out that Elle’s husband is not his biological father, and he’s having a tough time dealing with it. I’d like for you to establish a relationship with Phoenix, but not right now.”
“Then, when? Don’t you think thirteen years is a long enough wait?” my mother asked.
I had no intention of telling them about Phoenix’s suicide attempt and thirty-day hospital stay. I didn’t think they could handle it. “He’s going to therapy and his doctor says he needs about a month to process everything. Phoenix thought that Everett’s parents were his grandparents, so he’s going to need about a month before he’s ready to meet you two. Are you okay with that, Mom and Dad?”
My mother’s expression softened. “Of course we are. Do you have a picture of our grandson?”
I took my phone out of my pocket and pulled up a picture of Phoenix that I’d taken the other day. He was holding a ping-pong paddle in the activity room and there were no telltale signs that he was in the mental unit of a hospital. The picture could have been taken at school, at a rec center, or anywhere.
“This is your grandson, Phoenix,” I said, handing the phone over to my mother.
“Oh, my God, look at him. What a handsome boy. He’s the spitting image of you, Malik.”
“I know,” I said proudly.
“And I see a little bit of Winston in the way he’s standing,” she added.
“Really?” My father took the phone from my mother and scrutinized the picture. “He sure is a handsome boy, and he has your mouth, Ruth Ann.” He took on a sudden stern expression and said, “Did you get a DNA test done?”
“No.”
He burst out laughing. “It doesn’t matter; you don’t need one. If that boy isn’t your own flesh and blood, then I don’t who is.” He peered at the photo again. “Look at him! He’s you all over again at that age, only you were a little taller.”
“Yeah, he didn’t get the growth spurt yet, but I told him that it’s coming,” I said gaily.
The tension in my parents’ household had lifted. All of their pent-up resentment and disappointment seemed to dissipate with the glimpse of their grandson. Seeing them happy made me happy, and I was finally able to forgive them for treating Zoe so coldly. I couldn’t force them to love her, and with the way Sasha and I poured our love on her, she wasn’t missing anything.
“Let me send a copy of this pic to your phones,” I said, retrieving my phone from my father’s hand. “Elle is going to send you guys a ton of pictures of Phoenix over the years. I gave her your email address, Mom, so be on the lookout for an email from her.”
I sent the picture to their phones. My father pulled his phone from his pocket, and my mother bustled to the dining room to get her phone that was plugged in and charging at an outlet.
The smiles on their faces put a smile in my heart. It was a shame that it took Phoenix’s near-death experience to bring our family back together.
Now I had to get back to Arizona and make sure that my marriage was intact.
• • •
At the airport, Sasha and Zoe stood near the baggage claim area, waiting for me. I saw them before they noticed me and drank in the lovely sight of them. I’d never been away from my girls for longer than an overnight business trip and hopefully, I’d never have to leave them again.
As I grew closer, Sasha saw me and broke into a smile. “There he is,” she said, nudging Zoe.
Thrilled to see me, Zoe ran toward me. “Daddy!” She leapt into my arms, her long legs wrapping around me as she hugged me tightly.
Sasha joined us in a family embrace, and I felt like the luckiest man in the world. I was completely at peace with everyone who was important to me: my parents, my son, and my wife and daughter.
During the ride home, Sasha quietly concentrated on driving while Zoe excitedly filled me in on all the adventures I’d missed at the Grand Canyon.
“We have to go back next year, Daddy.”
“Absolutely,” I agreed.
“Do you promise?” Zoe asked, aware that it took years to pull this trip together due to her mother and my hectic work schedules.
“I promise, Zo-Zo.”
“Mom said you had an emergency in Philly, but she wouldn’t say what it was.”
“We’ll talk about my trip later,” I said, glancing at Sasha and trying to gauge her feelings, but her expression was imperceptible.
“I hate it when you guys treat me like a baby and keep secrets from me.”
“We’ll talk about it after your mother and I have a serious discussion.”
Zoe frowned and held up her hands. “What could it be? Did Grandma and Grandpa Copeland die and leave us a fortune?”
“No, they didn’t die. Don’t be disrespectful, Zoe,” Sasha chastised.
I understood Zoe’s blasé attitude regarding my parents. She barely had a memory of her trip to Philly, but she remembered that they made her feel unwelcome. She was aware that my relationship with them was strained and she sensed that it had something to do with me adopting her. She therefore felt no loyalty or connection to them at all.
“I made your favorite meal, Foza sy hena-kisoa,” Sasha said, trying to elevate the mood in the car.
I didn’t speak or understand much French or Malagasy, but I knew that Foza sy hena-kisoa was an incredibly delicious dish that consisted of stir-fried pork, crab meat, lobster, fresh greens, and lime juice that was served with a pile of rice. I wasn’t sure about the herbs and spices that gave it that Madagascar island flavor, but my stomach began to rumble at the thought of the meal.
At home, the three of us sat in the dining room, eating dinner. Sasha and I chatted, but Zoe didn’t join in on the pleasant small talk. She picked at her food, deciding to pout until she got the information about my trip to Philadelphia.
I cleared my throat. “I went to Philly to meet your stepbrother.”
Zoe frowned. “What stepbrother?”
I looked at Sasha and she placed her hand on top of mine and squeezed it.
“His name is Phoenix, and he’s thirteen,” I said before I launched into the sad story of my life before I’d met her mother. I told her about my drug usage and the time I’d spent in prison. I even told her how a change of heart about kidnapping Phoenix had led me to my new life in Phoenix, Arizona. Then I divulged that Phoenix was so unhappy not knowing the truth about his paternity that he’d tried to commit suicide.
“But he’s doing fine, now,” I quickly added.
“Wow!” Zoe said after taking it all in.
Despite the good food, the mood at the dinner table changed. We were all so somber and quiet, you could hear a pin drop.
“Let me get this straight,” Zoe said, breaking the silence. “If your son had been named Memphis, you would have ended up in Tennessee?”
Sasha and I burst out laughing. The levity Zoe brought to the grim situation was exactly what was needed.
“So, when am I going to meet Phoenix?” Zoe inquired.
“If things go as planned, he’s going to spend two weeks with us this summer,” I replied. I spoke in a casual manner, but inside I was giddy—as happy as a kid at Christmastime.
Later that night, in bed, Sasha revealed that during my absence, she feared that old feelings would spark up between Elle and me.
I propped myself up on an elbow and stared down at her. “Why would you think that? I would never betray you, Sasha.”
“I let my insecurities get the best of me.”
“What insecurities? You’re the most confident woman I know.”
“I thought so, too, but this past week I’ve been terrified that the old flame between you and Elle had been rekindled.”
“I don’t understand why you would think that.”
“Well, you were barely over her when we met. We were both rebounds,” she admitted with a sad smile. “And you never said that you two had stopped loving each other. You said she moved on because your addiction left her no choice. I feared that seeing the wonderful man you’ve become would make her want to reclaim you. And I feared that now that Phoenix knew the truth, you’d be eager to begin a life with your real family.”
“You, Zoe, and Phoenix are my real family—not Elle. Elle and I were like strangers, and our son was our only connection. Whatever we had in the past is long gone. It’s dead! I love you, Sasha, so please, don’t ever think that you can’t trust me around Elle or any other woman.”
That night Sasha initiated sex. She told me to lie back and enjoy myself, and I did. She made love to me with an intense passion and I wasn’t sure if the passion was ignited by the fact that she missed me or if she felt like she had to compete with Elle.