Phoenix ran to the door, in relief at the sound of the door bell.
There she was, slightly blushing, struggling to hold her suitcase.
"I'm so sorry, I should have met you downstairs..." he said regretfully, taking the over night bag from her grasp.
Maya was a little flustered but she smiled gently up at him, "No problem, where is she?"
"In her room, probably tearing it apart as we speak" the former attorney sighed, leading Maya into the living area. It looked the same as it always had, Steel Samurai DVDs piled up next to the television, law journals shoved thoughtlessly into bookcases... Maya sighed, you would still think a bachelor lived here rather than a father. Although she could hear the screaming from the next room, Maya delicately took off her scarf, folded it neatly before resting it on the sofa.
Catching her stares at the room, Phoenix jumped to his own defence, "I'm so sorry, its a mess in here, I haven't had much time to clean up, she's only been here a week... everything was fine at first but now-"
"Nick," she gently took him by the elbow, "its fine, don't worry, you've got a lot on your plate right now"
His shoulders dropped, finally relaxing a little, "Thank you... Maya, I-" he couldn't help but hesitate when their eyes met, it had really been a long time. Phoenix felt compelled to make things right, despite the urgent situation, "Everything's gone so wrong and I hate how we left things, I just-"
"Nick..." she repeated quietly, she averted his gaze and looked down. Phoenix couldn't help himself but continue to look down at Maya, she was still beautiful, she was not wearing her usual yukata, she dressed casually but cute. A ditsy printed dress with a little denim jacket. Guessing she was in a rush when she left, her hair was pulled up in a messy bun, instead of her usual top knot. She put her finger to her lips and winked, "Not now"
He shook his head, "I'm sorry, I think I'm starting to not hear the screaming..." He continued talking as he followed Maya down the hall to Trucy's bedroom. "We've come to a Mexican stand off, she's barely slept or eaten for nearly two days and she won't take a bath..."
Maya slowly crept into the doorway of the box room, it was bare and unwelcoming. She would definitely be dragging him shopping for this little girl tomorrow. Maya entered the room with caution. "Hi there..." she gave a gentle smile, the little girl paused, staring in surprise at the pretty lady in front of her. "I'm Maya, what's your name?" she asked, crouching down.
The look of surprise turned to curiosity, the eight year old put her hand to her mouth, "My name is Trucy..."
"Wow! That's a cool name, right?" Maya began cheerfully, "I heard you're looking after my friend Nick for me?"
She slowly nodded, looking up at Phoenix and back down to Maya in awe, blushing.
"Thank you very much, Trucy, I was really worried about him" she held out her hand to Trucy, hoping she would take it. A few tears of relief escaped as Phoenix's heart began to melt. There was a reason he called her, she just had this way with children.
Trucy took her hand, "He says I should sleep, have a bath and eat but he doesn't either..." she said in a loud whisper.
Phoenix jumped and peered into the doorway, "Tattle..."
Maya pulled the little girl towards her and took her by the shoulders, "Is that right? Well I'm here now, so you don't have to worry about Nick any more, he's definitely going to do doing all those things starting from now!" she smiled and picked up Trucy. "Now shall we get you guys in the bath?"
Trucy looked up at the exhausted man over Maya's shoulder and smiled, "Okay!"
With excitement, Trucy jumped down and ran into the bathroom, Maya began to follow her but she suddenly felt her hand being grabbed. "Thank you, Maya... I don't deserve your help, I know that..." Phoenix's head was bowed, attempting to control his sobs, he didn't know what else to do but just continue to squeeze her hand. Maya squeezed it back and quickly wiped his tears away, her grip lingering on his cheek.
She gave him a reassuring smile, "Get it together mister, your a daddy now."