I walked down the pathway towards a warehouse, which had shut down 9 years ago. I slid through a gap in the gate when I got there, entering a room filled with cushions, blankets, and chairs sprawled across the floor with our band equipment set down in the middle. This place had been our hangout spot since we were about 10 years old and eventually turned into a music room kind of place. We had covered the walls with splashes of colour and different paintings that we made throughout the years. There was an entire wall dedicated to posters, pictures, and other things related to music. In a little corner at the back of the room was a squared table with our pictures in wooden frames placed in an orderly manner, along with some random things that belonged to us. This place is our spot since no one ever comes here. You could even consider it a second home.
Aliya and Alex were already here, scrolling through their phones. I walked towards my favourite chair and sat down.
A few minutes of comfortable silence later, footsteps were heard.
"Hey, y'all. What's up?!", Amani exclaimed as Alina walked behind her.
"Amaniii... how have you been? It's so good to see you again!" I jumped out of my seat, sprinting towards her and wrapped her in a tight hug. She chuckled as she hugged me back just as tight.
Everyone exchanged greetings and hugs. A few minutes later there were more footsteps. We all turned around to find Bonnie and Jayden walk in with a little girl trying to hide behind them.
"Hey, guys!" Bonnie said happily. Everyone responded with happy Hi's or Hey Bonnie's as we all took turns hugging her and then Jayden. Once we all were done, all eyes turned towards the little girl, which was probably not the best thing since she was practically dying inside from all the attention, so I decided to break the intense silence and get everyone to look at me instead.
"People!" I exclaimed, and this time all eyes were on me. "Stop staring at her, you're making her nervous," I whisper shouted. A series of Okay's were heard and then everyone walked off to sit down. "Sorry," I whispered to the little girl, who gave me a smile in return as she walked with Bonnie and Jayden towards the sofa that was to the left of my chair.
Once everyone was seated, Jayden began to talk.
"So, everyone, I would like for you to finally meet our daughter," he said and turned towards the little girl. "Say hi, sweetheart," he said to her.
"Hi," she said, barely in a whisper.
"Hello," I said cheerily to give her some motivation, so she doesn't feel too nervous. I looked at everyone else and they said their Hellos and Hi's as well. They were being so ridiculous, she's a child, just make her feel like she can't ease up to us and relax.
"What's your name?" Aliya asked in a calming tone.
"Cathrine," she replied shyly.
"Nice to meet you, Cathrine," Amani said. I could see Cathrine easing up a bit and Bonnie relaxing at the same time.
Bonnie and Jayden were 15 when they had Cathrine. They sent her to Italy with Bonnie's family so that they could keep doing school and figure out how to raise her on their own. We had never met her before until now. After 3 years they are now 18 and have finished high school. Cathrine is 3 years old, and she is adorable. I guess they'll start raising her here in Virginia now.
It has been 25 minutes since Cathrine had arrived and met us, and she is currently playing around with Alex and the triplets, they're quite good with kids but take a little time to adjust I suppose.
I was having a conversation with Bonnie and Jayden about how they were going to raise Cathy here with all of us. I also found out that they made me her godmother. It just makes me so happy to be around a cute, bubbly, sweet little girl who would make anyone's day.