Chandra was just coming out of the bathroom and heading over to the basin to wash her hands when she heard a child whimpering. She frowned, her heart constricting uncomfortably at the woe. Poor little mite. The girl's day hadn't gone so well thus far.
Chan loved children and couldn't stand it when they became upset and cried. This one sounded like she was heartbroken.
Once she was done washing and drying her hands with a paper towel, she made her way around to see how the child was doing. She found Lilly crying her heart out and couldn't help but laugh in shocked surprise.
"Lilly?"
Lilly looked up, tears and all.
"My gosh, I can't believe I'm meeting you here." She crouched down and said, "Remember me? It's Chan."
"Chan?"
"Yes, Chan from the Thursday market."
Lilly cocked her head to the other side. She'd stopped crying now and started hiccupping. "Chan?"
"It's all right if you don't remember me," Chan said. "But what's wrong with you, sweetheart?"
"My hair," Lilly said, pointing at the mess atop her head.
Chan glanced at the child's hair and chuckled. "Yeah. It's a mess, isn't it?"
Lilly nodded. "It was really pretty this morning. Daddy did my hair for me. I like it when Daddy does my hair. Everybody says it's nice. And now it's ruined." She sobbed some more as tears once again began to roll down her flushed pink cheeks.
Chan smiled. Gosh, this child was adorable, even when she was in distress. Hence, she offered, "Will it make you happy if it got fixed?"
Lilly nodded.
"Then how about I fix it for you?"
"You?"
"Yes, me. See?" Chan turned her head sideways to show off her braids. "I did that myself this morning. Would you like me to do yours as well?"
Lilly reached her hand out and caressed Chan's long braid, then nodded enthusiastically.
"All right, then. But first we have to clean those tears off your face. A girl doesn't look pretty with tears and dirt all over her face, yeah?"
"Really?"
"Yes, really," Chan replied.
She took Lilly out of the toilet stall and led her around to the basin. There, she propped Lilly up on the benchtop and began doing her magic. She took a tissue out from the Kleenex box and started wiping Lilly's face clean of tears and dirt. Then she undid Lilly's messed-up bun and brushed her hair out. Once that was done, she gently started braiding Lilly's hair. Meanwhile, Lilly gazed up at Chan, and now and again, the child smiled, and now and again, she stroked Chan's cheek and then her long hair.
Chan laughed. "Why are you touching my face?"
"You're pretty. Daddy called you pretty lady."
Chan suddenly remembered Lilly's dad. Her heart skipped a beat, and her stomach flipped. "Really?"
"Yes. I remember you at the market. You gave me five dollars to give to the dog."
Chan laughed. "Yes, that's right. There," she said, patting Lilly's hair. You're done now. Oh, no, wait. I lied."
"Adults don't lie," Lilly said. "Daddy doesn't lie. He always keeps his promises. I love my daddy."
"Good for you. Now hold still while I put this lip gloss on for you."
Lilly kept still as instructed while Chan applied lip gloss on her. Then Chan took the blue rose out from her hair and inserted it into Lilly's.
"A blue rose," Lilly said excitedly.
"You like it?"
Lilly nodded. "I like it very much."
Chan turned the girl so she could look at herself in the mirror. Lilly smiled. She couldn't help herself.
"There. You look awesome," Chan said.
"I look awesome," Lilly murmured. "What's awesome?"
"Like amazing."
Lilly giggled. "I look awesome." Then she turned and hugged Chan tight.
Chan felt her heart warm and chuckled. "You're a sweet child," she murmured.
Once Lilly let her go, Chan picked the girl up and put her back down on the floor.
"I have to go now. My date is waiting," Chan said.
"What's a date?" Lilly asked.
"It's when a girl and a guy who don't really know each other well go out, having lunch or dinner, and get to know each other better," Chan replied.
Lilly clapped her hands and jumped up and down in her spot. "I know. You can go on a date with Daddy. You can get to know each other," she said excitedly.
Chan couldn't help but laugh. "I don't think that's a good idea. I already have a date. You can't do multiple dates at the same time. At least I don't think so." She wasn't sure herself because she didn't really know the rules. Could one do serial dating? She'd have to ask her sisters when she got back.
"All right, come on. Let's go," Chan said, leading the little girl out of the bathroom.
They were just around the corner when Chan's phone rang. She crouched down and said to Lilly, "I have to get this call. See you around, okay, Lilly?"
Lilly nodded and then gave her a kiss on the cheek. "Bye-bye," she said and then ran off.
Chan reached into her satchel and got her cell phone. "Hey, Dara, what's up?"
"So? How's the date going? Just checking in and all."
Chan laughed. "You guys are so nosy. Well, the date is going just fine, thank you very much."
"Good to hear," Dara said.
"I better go. I've kept Jeremy waiting long enough."
"All right, missy," Dara replied.
In the background Chan heard Soriya say, "Give us all the juicy details when you get home. You're not getting out of it, young lady."
Chan laughed and said, "Bye-bye," then hung up. "Bye-bye?" she repeated to herself, her head cocked to one side. "I never say bye-bye." She shook her head with a smile playing about her lips.
She was still smiling, thinking about Lilly, when she came around the corner. She felt her heart sink, like her world had just collapsed, the moment she saw Lilly sitting with her dad and another woman. She could only see Lilly's dad from a side view, but the sight of him still affected her in the oddest way. Her heart was now racing in her chest. What was wrong with her?
A family outing. What a beautiful picture. What did she expect? That Lilly's dad was a single father? Just look at that woman. She was perfect from head to toe. Blond hair and bronze skin with a sexy sundress. They were perfect. Him and her and Lilly.
Chan tightened her hand around her cell phone, flicked her gaze from the man who had caused her heart to jump haphazardly, and headed toward the door.
She met Jeremy not too far away. "Hey, sorry for the delay," she said apologetically. "I had to rescue a damsel in distress."
"Knight in shining armor?" Jeremy teased. "How about rescuing me?"
"That depends on what type of rescuing you need," she said, laughing. Inside, however, she wasn't laughing. Inside, she was hurting.
Why?