by Niko Ortiz
Every afternoon, Sara brought Lily to the park and they sat on the same bench, the one facing the entrance gate, the one where you could see everyone who came in.
Lily always brought her drawing book. She filled it with pictures of their family, her, Mama, and Papa standing in front of their yellow house, all holding hands. Papa was always tallest. Papa was always smiling.
“When is Daddy coming home?” Lily asked one afternoon, not looking up from her drawing.
Sara looked at the gate. “Soon, baby.”
“You always say soon.”
“Because it’s always getting closer.”
Lily considered this seriously, the way only small children can, then went back to her drawing. She added a sun in the corner, big and round and yellow.
Sara kept her eyes on the gate. The afternoon light stretched long across the grass. Somewhere across the world, her husband was counting down the same days she was.
She reached over and tucked Lily under her arm.
They would wait as long as it took. That was what love did, it found a bench, and it would always be there.
Art by Barbara Wood, “Longing“
About the Author
Niko writes tiny worlds and gets lost in them on purpose.