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After a long time on the swings, we went back over to sit with Deira, who produced a juice box for Makayla out of her purse. I sat on the bench, and Makayla climbed up into Deira's lap.
"So, Makayla, I have some questions for you, if you don't mind," I said.
"Okay. Ask me," she replied.
I had a list memorized, about all her favorites and the kinds of things that she liked. I found out that she liked blue, and chipmunks, and "boy" toys like trucks and squirt guns, as well as making crafts and coloring. I mentally repeated all the answers to myself, wanting to be sure I could remember them long enough to write them down later.
As we talked, I could feel Deira relaxing. We'd been at the park for almost an hour, and it had gone really well. I hoped she realized that every time could be like this, and that I would do my best to make that happen.
There was a lull in the conversation, and then Makayla suddenly leaned over to Deira's ear and whispered something. Deira listened, glancing at me, and then nodded at Makayla. Makayla grinned, and then whispered something else to her.
"Why don't you ask him?" Deira replied. Makayla looked at me shyly, and then got down from Deira's lap to stand in front of me.
"Mr. Cassius, do you want to get ice cream with us?"
I couldn't help but grin widely.
"Miss Makayla, I wouldloveto get ice cream with you."
"Yay!!" she cried, clapping her hands and jumping up and down a little. "Have you ever been to Sprinkles? It's right near here."
"No, I've never been. Can you show me how to get there?"
Makayla nodded, and grabbed my hand. Deira and I stood up, and she led us over to the sidewalk and then along the street until we reached a small ice cream shop. We went in and Makayla immediately went to the counter and started looking at all the flavors through the glass.
I saw Deira glance at me, a strange look on her face.
"Everything okay?" I asked.
"Yeah, I just... she really seems to like you." She sounded surprised, and gave me a skeptical look. "She's usually a great judge of character."
"So, I passed the test?" I said, only half joking.
"Too early to say," she replied, but she smiled gently, which I took as another good sign.
Makayla picked three flavors and Deira tried to argue her down to one, and finally we settled on two flavors each after I offered to pay for everyone. We sat at one of the tiny pink tables outside and enjoyed the last of the beautiful afternoon. Apparently, ice cream and swings were all Makayla required to be fast friends, because she chatted away to me about a string of topics, seemingly whatever crossed her mind. I listened intently, glancing at Deira from time to time. At least twice, I caught her smiling at me, and smugly felt like things were going very well.
As the sun started to set, it turned a little chilly, and Deira stood up.
"Okay, baby," she said to Makayla, "time to get going."
"I can drive you guys home," I offered, bracing myself to argue with Deira when she rejected this offer as she always did. Instead, she tilted her head to look at me deeply, and then nodded. I couldn't help but smile at this progress.
I let Makayla pick the music on the drive back, which delighted her. She picked the soundtrack to an animated movie I'd never heard of, and I made a note to look it up later. She obviously loved it, singing along loudly.
"Mom, sing!" she said, shaking Deira's shoulder. Deira reluctantly joined in, singing softly and giving me a small, embarrassed smile. I returned it warmly. I hoped she knew that it wasn't embarrassing at all. In fact, it was adorable.
When we got to their place, Makayla unbuckled herself and leaned between the two front seats.
"Mom, can we play with Cassius again sometime soon?" Deira looked a little surprised, but nodded her head.
"Of course, we can, if you want to," Deira said.
"I want to!" Makayla turned to me. "Do you want to?" she asked.
"I would like that very much," I replied.
"Good!" Makayla said, and she suddenly reached up and gave me a hug. My heart felt like it might burst, and I was amazed. I hadn't realized a small thing like a hug could make me so happy.
