Together Lilly and I got up from the couch and made our way to Aria's room. She knocked softly on the door and I waited just behind her. I was after all the stranger in all of this. I would give her as much room as was needed.

“Aria,” Lilly called when she didn’t answer. “I know you're mad, but we need to talk about this.”

She knocked again and still no answer. Lilly looked back at me worry on her face. I didn’t have a good feeling either.

Lilly opened the door and walked into the room.

“Aria?” She called before bursting back out “She’s gone!”

“What?”

She handed me a piece of paper. In a child’s had was the simple words “I am running away.”

It was such a simple and innocent phrase but also sent a chill of panic through me. This was after all the city and it was starting to get dark.

“How could she get out your on the second floor?” I said confused.

“There is a fire escape out her window.”

I walked passed Lilly and into the room. It looked like the normal room of a little girl but the window as open and screen pushed out.

“Come on,” I said walking out of the room and grabbing Lilly’s hand. “She couldn’t have gotten that far.”

We sat in silence in my car as we drove the darkening streets around Lilly’s complex. The hard part was not knowing what direction she went.

“What if someone took here. She is just a little girl. Maybe I should call the police.”

“They wouldn’t do anything about it yet. Where would she have wanted to go?”

“I mean we already went in the direction of Em and the dance studio. Maybe lets try over there,” she said pointing to the left. “There is a park we go to sometimes.”

I flipped the car around and sped in the new direction.

“Oh thank God! There she is!” Lilly said pointing to a small figure sitting on a bus stop Barrettch under a street light.

Even with the darkness and the shadows casting on her face it was easy to see she was crying. Maybe she had tried to go somewhere and was lost, either way I was relieved that we found her.

I pulled over a ways up from the stop. I turned to Lilly.

“Hey, can I talk to her first?” I asked.

She hesitated. I could see she wanted to run to her baby and hold her close. She relaxed a little and nodded in agreement.

I got out of the car and walked over to Aria. Without saying a word I sat down on the bench next to her. She sniffed once.

“So you’re my dad?” she asked finally while still looking at her dangling feet.

“Yeah,” was all I could muster to say.

“So where have you been. Apparently not in heaven like I thought. I used to pretend you were up there wishing you could be here with me.”

I looked down at her. I so wanted to wrap my little girls in my arms and dry away all her tears.

“I was with the Red Cross. I didn’t know that your mom got pregnant, otherwise I would have been here.”

“So she lied to you too,” Aria said with anger deeply laced in her words.

“No, and she only told you that story so you wouldn’t be sad that I wasn’t around. You see, your mom and I didn’t know each other that well before. She didn’t have a way of finding me to tell me about you. She tried though. I wish she had. I would have loved to be there.”

“I was hoping,” I added hesitantly, “that maybe now that I knew about you and you knew about me, maybe we could get to know each other a little better. Maybe spend some time together.”

She looked up at me then for the first time. It was as if I was looking into my own face. I hesitated and then reached down to dry a tear.

“I would like it very much if you would let me be your Dad,” I said laced with emotion.

“I think I would like that too,” she finally said before leaning in and wrapping her arms around me in a hug.

I froze in my spot. I wasn’t expecting her to hug me. It only took me a moment though before I hugged her back in return. Standing up I took her hand and helped her down from the high bench.

"Come on,” I said nudging in the direction of the car with my head. “Your mom has been worried sick. I’m pretty sure she could use a hug too.”