When Camille opened her eyes, her face was full of tears. With a sigh, she got up and went into the bathroom. She splashed cold water on her face and looked in the mirror. She was exhausted and tired. She should go to sleep. Camille left the bathroom and was surprised to see Mia standing in the living room, looking sadly at her.
"What's wrong, honey? Did you have a nightmare?" She went to Mia and hugged her. Mia shook her head.
"Do you want to tell me what makes you so sad?"
She nodded. Camille sat back on the couch and pulled her daughter onto her lap. Mia snuggled up to her and was silent for a few more seconds until she finally began to tell, "Today in kindergarten we talked about our families. And I talked about you and me."
"And what happened after that?"
"A girl asked me why I didn't say anything about my daddy. I didn't know what to say." She took a deep breath and gave Camille a serious look. "Mommy, who's my daddy? Why isn't he with us?"
Camille should have known that Mia would ask that question sooner or later. She considered an answer and finally said, "Before I came here, I lived in America with your daddy. We were very happy. But one day I was offered a great role in a movie here in Paris. It was a great opportunity for me. But your daddy … he couldn't come with me."
"Why not?"
Camille hesitated before answering, "Because he has a very important job in America and that's why he had to stay there. But having a relationship with someone who is so far away from you is very difficult. So I went to Paris alone. And a few weeks later, I found out about you."
"Is my daddy a nice person?"
Camille smiled and lovingly stroked her daughter's curly hair, which resembled her own hair so much. "Yes, sweetheart. He is."
"Can we visit him?"
Camille sighed. "You know, it's not that easy for him and me, Mia. We are both very busy with our work and we haven't seen each other in five years. Unfortunately, I can't promise you that."
"Okay, Mommy," Mia said disappointed.
When Camille was in bed, she thought about the conversation again. She couldn't forget Mia's disappointed face. And then she made a decision.