Rosa had a lot of questions. At 10 years old, she was starting to take notice of things. Her curiosity started when she found a wedding picture from the day her mom and dad got married. She had seen pictures of that day many times, but they were usually just pictures of her mom and dad. This picture was different. It was of her mom, her dad, and her. She couldn't believe it. Everyone else in the family didn't have kids until they were married. So why was she in the picture? It didn't make sense to her. No one had ever said anything about this before.

Another thing she took notice of was her family. All of the kids were a perfect combination of their parents. Her 7-year-old brother, Isaiah, had curly, blond hair, green eyes, a skin tone that was right in between their mom and dad, and other features that looked like both of their parents. Her other brother, Ivan, had brown, curly hair, hazel eyes, a skin tone that was a little darker than Isaiah's, and, once again, other features that looked like both of their parents. Ivan even inherited his mom's eyesight and needed glasses at age 4.

Her 1-year-old sister, Elena, was also a perfect combination of their parents with features they both had. She had curly, dark blond hair, brown eyes, and a skin tone that was right in between their parents'. But Rosa was different. She had her mom's brown, curly hair that was shoulder-length, brown eyes, and darker skin tone. The only thing she didn't inherit from her mom was her bad eyesight. She didn't have any features of her dad. She spent a lot of time looking at all of her cousins, and there were a bunch of them, and noticed that every single one of them had certain features from both of their parents. Antonio was the only one who wasn't a combination of his parents, but he was identical to his dad.

Rosa didn't really know what to think, but she knew her parents could answer her questions. At least, she hoped they could. She didn't want to ask her questions at the dinner table due to the large number of people in her family. She loved everyone in her family and was very close with them, but it could be overwhelming at times.

Her dad had already tucked her into bed, but she didn't go to sleep. She waited until she knew most everyone in the house was asleep before sneaking out of her room and going to her parents' room. She knocked on the door. "Mama, Papa. Can I come in?"

"Come in!" called out Mirabel.

Rosa opened the door and saw her parents starting to get in bed. Max smiled at her. "Hi, mi amor. We thought you were asleep."

"I couldn't sleep." She slowly walked up to them. She was suddenly nervous to talk to them. She didn't know how to say it. "I, uh…I wanted to talk about something."

"Okay." said Mirabel. "We're listening."

She took a deep breath and sat on the edge of the bed. She had her parents' full attention. "So…I don't really know how to ask this. It's very weird. And it might not make sense. I'm just…I'm very confused."

"Well, we'll do our best to answer whatever questions you have." said Mirabel and then she shrugged. "That's why we're here."

Rosa nodded. "Okay, so…I know genetics can be weird. Like, Antonio looks exactly like Tio Felix, but not really Tia Pepa. But for everyone else in the family, they are a perfect combination of their parents. Even Isaiah, Ivan, and Elena are a perfect combination of you two. But I'm not."

Mirabel's heart picked up speed. No, no, no, she thought. She wasn't ready for this.

Rosa looked at Max. "I don't look like you, at all. I've seen baby pictures of both of us and there is no resemblance. Also…I found a picture from your wedding day. It's of the 3 of us. I didn't think anyone in the family had babies before marriage. I didn't even know I was at your wedding. I guess…I don't know, I don't really even know what I'm asking. Did any of that make sense?"

Max and Mirabel looked at each other. Mirabel took shaky breaths and gulped. She knew this day would come eventually, but she wasn't prepared for it. But, ready or not, it was here. "It's time."

"Yep." said Max.

Rosa looked between both of her parents in confusion. "Time for what?"

Mirabel looked at Rosa and took a deep breath. "Rosa. There is something…we need to tell you. I'm so sorry for not telling you sooner."

Rosa's heart picked up speed. "Tell me what?" It must be something big.

Mirabel rarely thought back to that time in her life, but despite that, the memories were still there. She would never forget how she got Rosa. "What I'm about tell you happened before I met your dad. When I was 20 years old, I met a man. We both really liked each other, so we started to date. He was…so charming. He made me feel loved." Mirabel had to stop to take a deep breath. "He made me feel loved for 3 and a half months until things changed. I don't know when or why, but he changed his mind. He suddenly…didn't like me anymore. He acted distant and like his mind was always elsewhere. He didn't even come to my 21st birthday party." Mirabel gulped. "I was heartbroken over it. Then, the next day, he broke up with me. I was even more heartbroken."

"Wait, I'm confused." said Rosa. "How does the story of a random guy you dated before Papa relate to anything I said before?"

"Keep listening," said Mirabel. "A few weeks went by and I was still thinking of this guy a lot. I didn't understand why he broke up with me, but I saw him in town with another woman and knew he had moved on. I was still heartbroken and just trying to get through each day. Then…one day…I woke up not feeling good. I felt sick and had to go to the bathroom to throw up. That very same day, Dolores heard something at the breakfast table." Mirabel paused for a moment. "She heard an extra heartbeat."

Rosa gasped. She knew Dolores was always the first one in the family to know when someone was pregnant. She was still in shock, unable to process what her mom just said, and said, "What do you mean…a heartbeat?"

Mirabel grabbed Rosa's hand. "I was pregnant, Rosa. I was pregnant…with you."

Rosa immediately took her hand out of her mom's grasp and stood up. She looked around for a minute, not having a clue as to what she should say. She looked at her mom. "But…but, I thought…" She couldn't find the words. She looked around for a few moments before looking back at her parents. "Mama…is Papa…not my real Papa?" Her eyes filled with tears. She couldn't believe this. She expected her parents to have answers to her questions. But she didn't expect this to be an answer.

Mirabel stood up. "I know you're very confused. Let me finish. I told him I was pregnant. I gave him many chances to be involved in your life, but he didn't want to be a dad. He wasn't ready. So…I was prepared to raise you alone." She turned to look at Max. He grabbed Mirabel's hand and she turned to look back at Rosa. "I met Papa when you were 10 months old. He stepped up. He didn't care that I had a child with someone else and he welcomed you with open arms. You loved him from the beginning and he loved you, too. Then…after we got married…you decided to start calling him Papa. That's who he was to you then and that's who he is to you now. He is your Papa, because he has been there for you since you were a baby."

Rosa looked between the 2 of them in complete shock. She felt like her whole life was a lie. She backed up a bit. "So…I'm someone else's daughter and…you didn't think to tell me? How could you keep this from me?" Her eyes filled with more tears. "I'm 10 years old, Mama. You both have been lying to me this whole time?"

"Rosa, we are so, so sorry." said Mirabel. "I wanted to tell you sooner, but I didn't know when the right time was. I first thought about telling you when you were 5, but I didn't think you'd fully understand it. You kept getting older and I kept thinking 'I need to tell her,' but I just didn't know the right time and…I didn't know how to tell you. Actually…we were just talking about a month ago about telling you soon."

"It's my life, Mama!" yelled Rosa. "I'm the one who has lived my whole entire life thinking Papa is my actual dad, but he's not. How could you do that to me? I don't even know who I am anymore!" She felt like her whole world was crashing around her.

Normally, Mirabel would have told her to stop yelling, but she had every right to yell and be angry. Mirabel was actually angry at herself for letting it go as long as it did. She never planned for it to be like that. "Honey, I'm so sorry. I know I should have told you sooner." Her eyes filled with tears. "I wanted him to be in your life so much. I gave him several chances when I told him I was pregnant. Tia Isabela went to see him the day I had you and gave him another chance to be involved and he literally told her 'I don't want a relationship with my child.' The last chance I gave him was when you were 3 and it was my birthday. He came by Casita to wish me a happy birthday and I told him, since you're here, do you want a relationship with Rosa? I told him he didn't have to be here every day. Just to have consistent visits with her and if he said he would be coming, he'd be there. He immediately said he didn't want a relationship and that it was too late. How was I supposed to tell you, my beautiful, wonderful daughter, that her own father had no interest in being in her life?" She didn't realize that tears were rolling down her cheeks. "Next to your dad and brothers and sister, you are the most important thing in this world to me. He caused me so much heartache and I didn't want that for you. I wanted you to have that innocence for as long as possible. Still, I should have told you. I'm so sorry."

Rosa was still angry, but she was also very sad now. Mirabel could see her face fall and she could tell she was about to cry. Mirabel stepped forward and, very slowly, wrapped her arms around Rosa. Mirabel half-expected Rosa to pull away, but instead, she wrapped her arms around her mother and cried. Mirabel ran her hands through her hair and just held her tight. She never wanted her daughter to experience this pain, but she knew it had to happen sooner or later. When Rosa stopped crying, Mirabel pulled away and said, "A parent is not just someone who you're blood related to. A parent is someone who is there for you, takes care of you, and loves you unconditionally. That's who your Papa is to you." Mirabel turned around and held her hand out to Max. He grabbed her hand. They both turned back to Rosa. "He has been there for you since the day he met you. He is who a father should be."

Rosa looked at Max. Her eyes filled with more tears and she stepped up to him, wrapping her arms around him. He wrapped his arms tightly around her. He kissed the top of her head and said, "I love you so much, Rosa. It is an honor to be your father. Your biological dad is the one who is missing out. From the moment I met you, I knew you were special. He's the loser who didn't even give fatherhood a chance. His loss is my gain."

Rosa was quiet for a moment before asking the real question that was on her mind. "Do you love the twins and Elena more than me?"

Without hesitation, Max said, "Absolutely not. Just because you're not biologically mine doesn't mean I love you any less than I do your siblings. I love you all exactly the same." He shrugged. "To be honest…I didn't know I could love another child as much as I loved you."

Mirabel nodded. "I felt the same way." She touched Rosa's cheeks and wiped away her tears. "I love all 4 of my babies exactly the same."

Rosa thought for a moment. This was a lot to take in. She was still upset at her mom for not telling her sooner, but she understood why she didn't. It was clear to her that her biological father caused her mother a lot of pain. "Why didn't he want a relationship with me?"

"Rosa, I've asked myself that question more times than you can possibly even imagine." Mirabel said and then sighed. "When I found out I was pregnant with you, I was so scared. But I already loved you so much. Before I even met you, I knew you would be so special. I just couldn't understand why he wouldn't want to get to know you. Then, when I had you, you became my number 1 priority. I couldn't imagine my life without you. The day that I told him I was pregnant, he said he might want to visit you when you were older, but I told him that was too confusing for a child. He needed to make a decision and I gave him until you were born and so –"

Rosa immediately cut her off. "Wait, what? He said he wanted to visit me when I was older, but you told him no? You just got through telling me you wanted him to have a relationship with me. What if he has wanted to visit me since then, but didn't, because you told him no?"

"I know how that sounds, Rosa, but I promise you, I was looking out for you. When I told him I was pregnant, I was very early along. He had over 7 months to make up his mind and he still decided he didn't want to be involved when you were born. Then, like I already told you, I gave him another chance when you were 3. He still didn't want to be involved. He said it was too late and that you'd be a stranger to him. I didn't want you to experience a dad coming in and out of your life and making you feel like you weren't worth enough to stay all the time."

Rosa took a deep breath. "So…have you seen him at all since I was 3? Has he ever acted like he wants to be in my life?"

Mirabel shook her head. "No, mi vida. I actually haven't seen him around town since that day. A few years ago, I asked Dolores if she had heard him recently and she said she hasn't, so that makes me think he left."

Rosa still had so many questions. She wanted to know more about this man. "What was his name?"

"Javier, but he went by Javi."

Hearing a name made it even more real. "Did our family like him?"

"Yeah, they liked him. At least they did when we were together. He was here for dinner a lot and they all got along really well."

"What did he think of the magic?"

Mirabel took a shaky deep breath. "I think it confused him. When he broke up with me, he told me he didn't understand the magic and thought it was very weird. He understood the miracle, but he thought all the magical powers was just weird. My family means everything to me, so to hear him say that was very hurtful."

Rosa nodded. "So, he probably would think I'm weird. If only he could see me now." Rosa had a very interesting power. She had control over 1 of the 4 elements: air. It wasn't controlled by her emotions, which she was thankful for. She had the ability to make it really windy, make it nice and breezy, or she could make the wind go away altogether. She was the best at counteracting Pepa's powers if she was causing a tornado. She also gave people relief on really hot days and could make it better with a nice breeze. Another thing about her is that she could control her body temperature. She couldn't control anyone else's, but she was never cold or hot. She could be in below freezing or extremely hot temperatures and stay comfortable. 3 of her other cousins controlled the other 3 elements (fire, water, and earth) and could also control their bodies temperatures.

"You, my darling, are not weird." said Mirabel. "You are growing into the most beautiful young lady. Your power is a gift. Not everyone is going to understand it, and that's okay."

"Does he have a family that ever cared to get to know me?"

"He had his parents, sister, and niece that I saw a few times. I haven't seen them since we were together. Honestly, knowing him, he probably told them we broke up and then never even mentioned the pregnancy. Or if they saw I was pregnant, I wouldn't put it past him to tell them it was someone else's baby. If he left, there's a chance they all left, too." Mirabel used to think she knew everyone in the Encanto, but it was bigger than it seemed and it had grown since she was younger. She was meeting someone new all the time, so she didn't think it was too weird that she never ran into Javi or his family. But her real guess was that they all left.

"What did he look like?"

"Well…he had dark brown hair, brown eyes, and his skin tone was about the same as mine."

"Which is why mine is just like that, too." Rosa suddenly yawned. The exhaustion was catching up to her.

Mirabel nodded. She touched Rosa's shoulder and rubbed it. "Look, I know you probably have so many questions and I promise, I will answer all of them for you, but it's way past your bedtime and its past our bedtime, too. Do you want me or Papa to tuck you back into bed?"

Rosa thought for a moment. She had just received earth-shattering news and honestly, she didn't want to be alone. She rarely slept with her parents, but tonight was an exception. "Um…can I sleep in here…with you guys?" She looked between both of them. "I just…I don't want to be alone."

Mirabel was okay with it, but she still looked at Max, who nodded, and turned back to Rosa. "Yeah, that would be fine. Come on."

Rosa climbed into bed and Mirabel got in next to her. She was between her parents. As soon as her head hit the pillow, she let out another yawn and was rubbing her eyes. Mirabel pulled the covers over her daughter and Rosa closed her eyes. Within just a few minutes, Rosa was asleep. Mirabel looked over her daughter's head at Max and she said, "I love you."

"I love you, too." Max gave her a little smile and then turned over and turned the lamp off.

Mirabel took her glasses off and laid down. She snuggled up to her little girl. No matter how old she got, she would always be her little girl. She wanted to protect her from all the pain in the world and it absolutely broke her heart that she couldn't.