5. Sophie called me Daddy

Tobias Bernstorff

I hear the pilot's deep and melodious voice announcing the landing at Berlin airport, and my senses sharpen. I widen my eyes, searching for the woman who sat beside me the entire flight.

I glance around, but I don't see anything until I get up and spot a colorful notebook with a butterfly on the cover, presumably a diary. Carefully, I pick it up in my hands, and that's when I see Nihara near the exit of the plane. I try to get her attention, but I'm stopped by the flight attendant, who instructs us to follow the disembarkation order.

    "Nihara, please," I shout, but her gaze is brief as she continues down without being able to turn back. I wait patiently, and when I finally leave the plane, I scan the airport with my eyes, looking for her in every face. But she seems to have vanished into thin air, leaving me with the anguish of not knowing what to do now.

    "Tob, what's wrong? Are you okay? What are you looking for?" Harry asks, appearing behind me in confusion.

I'm looking for the woman of my life

    "Ah, yes, of course, I just..." I pause, thinking of something better to say to evade his questions. "Come here, I missed you so much, how are you?" I hug him tightly and pat his back before letting go.

    "What's this?" He receives the diary and looks at it curiously. "You know that Astrid isn't the type of teenager who keeps a diary, right?"

    "Really?" I make a puzzled expression. "I've been around her for sixteen years, how did I not know that?!" I jest, and Harry lets out an awkward laugh.

    "Smart ass, let's go already, your family is anxiously waiting."

    "How's my girl?"

    "She's great and missing you like crazy. She wouldn't leave my side, her gaze seemed like she knew I was coming to pick you up, and she wanted to come along. She was all worked up when I left," my friend gives a sniffling laugh, pausing to blink forcefully and making the tears forming in his blue eyes dissipate.

    "I feel like I've been away from her for years, that was the hardest part of this trip, not being able to take her with me," I inhale and exhale slowly, getting lost in my thoughts.

We remain silent for several minutes, and without saying anything, Harry nods towards the diary in my hands, prompting me to break the silence. But before I can respond, we're interrupted by the ringing of my phone.

    "Where are you guys? Why is it taking so long? Did something happen? Sophie is sitting out on the porch and refuses to come inside, she's waiting for you," Herman informs anxiously from the other end of the line.

    "Hey, little brother, take a breath, everything's fine. We're on our way, and if I'm late, blame Harry," I give a mischievous smile and glance at my best friend, who just grimaces. "We'll be there in twenty minutes."

    I hang up the phone and can't ignore the strange expression my friend has now. I wonder if it has something to do with the conversation I just had with Herman. But no, it's something more serious that's bothering him.

    "So, when do you plan on telling me what's going on?" I ask directly, and he glances at me out of the corner of his eye. "There's no use denying that something is up."

    "Not now, please, not now, let's not ruin this day," I look at him for a few seconds and end up nodding.

***

The sign by the roadside welcomes my arrival in Prenzlauer with the words, "Welcome to the city of Prenzlauer." After only fifteen days away, everything seems so different. The city is busier, more alive, and more vibrant than I remembered. The energy of the crowd is contagious, with familiar faces among the pedestrians, each busy with their shopping and daily chores. I smile as I observe some carrying baskets filled with fresh fruits and vegetables, and others holding heavy bags full of purchases.

On the other side of the street, my dear Nana is loaded with bags, receiving help from the local merchant, Louis, and our trusted driver, Juan Carlos. Intrigued by the change in the city's atmosphere, I ask my companion, Harry, what's going on?

    "Tobias, I've already told you, not today. Please, don't insist," he responds impatiently, sure that I'm referring to the issue that's bothering him.

    "I'm talking about the city's hustle and bustle."

    "Ah, that. You never forget important dates, what's going on? Did Luanda's heat melt your neurons?"

    "Idiot."

I abruptly exit the car, go behind my Nana, and cover her eyes with both hands. When Louis notices me, I gesture to him to not say anything.

    "Who is it? Louis, what's happening? Where are you?" she trails her hands over mine.

   "Nancy, you need to guess who it is," he, smiling.

    "We've taken longer than we should have, Mrs. Heidi is going to be very angry, and I'll tell her you made us late," Louis chuckles carefree.

    "Well, you better guess who I am soon, Nana," I reveal myself at last.

    "Tobias, my son, is that you?!" Nana turns around and pulls me into a tight hug. "How are you, my boy? Look at you..." She steps back a bit and looks me up and down. "You're so thin." She hugs me even tighter this time.

    "Nana, you're suffocating me," I say, and she lets go, startled, while I pretend to cough.

    "Hello, Mr. Tobias," the older, gray-haired man greets me, extending his hand.

    "Louis, come on, give me a hug."

We now enter the vast property, where grandeur and harmony coexist in perfect symbiosis. We pass through the majestic entrance, adorned with wrought ironwork. Before us stands the three-story mansion, boasting twelve bedrooms and six bathrooms, seemingly floating amidst the lush greenery that surrounds it. Besides, it lies the four-bedroom house that accommodates the property's internal staff, harmonizing perfectly in symmetry with the main mansion.

    Not far away, we catch sight of the large vegetable farm and orchard, housing an abundance of fruits as if they were precious jewels of nature. It's hard to believe that everything was designed by my grandfather a hundred years ago, as everything still looks new and in perfect harmony with the environment.

    "DADDY!" Sophie cries out with her tiny, almost inaudible voice, trying to stand up.

    "Oh my God, did you just call me 'daddy'?"

I hold her in my arms, surprised and at the same time happy, tears wetting my wide smile. She runs her little hand over my face, wipes the tears away, and hugs me.

    "Harry, Sophie just called me 'daddy'."

    "Really? I'm so happy for you," he says, pausing and wiping away tears that have formed in his eyes with the back of his hand. "Hey Sophie, can you say 'Uncle Harry'?"

    "Come on, my friend, now you're asking too much. Let's go inside. Where is everyone?"

    "SURPRISE!" Everyone shouts in unison as soon as we enter.

    "Maninho, can you pretend to be surprised?" Astrid speaks up as she approaches and envelops me in a hug.

    "My favorite little sister, how are you? I've missed you so much. Daughter, go to your aunt's lap," I beg, but the baby refuses.

    "Papa," she says, hugging me with her short arms and resting her blonde head on my chest.

    "It's alright, my girl. Mom, dad, did you hear that Sophie called me 'papa'?" I notify, getting closer to them and embracing them with her in my arms.

    "Son," Mom caresses my face, and Dad just watches us, tears in his eyes, waiting for his turn. "It seems she waited for you to arrive, so you wouldn't miss this unique moment. The day a child calls us 'mom' or 'dad' is the day we officially become parents. I... I would give anything for your brother to have experienced this moment."

    "I feel the same way, Mom. It's the challenging part of being called 'papa' by my brother's daughter. I feel like an impostor. I vividly remember when the ugly duckling shared the news of Christie's pregnancy."

                                          [...]

     Simon walks into my office in a flash as if he's being chased, standing by my desk in silence with his hand on his chest trying to regulate his breathing.

  "Hey, Toto, do you know who uncle is going to be?" he asks rhetorically seconds later.

    "Simon, don't come into my office like that again, okay? And don't call me Toto,  "I scold him." Tell me, who's going to be uncle?"

    I know exactly who he means, but I like to contradict him in his little games, he sits down and can't stop smiling, I've never seen such a satisfying and beautiful smile on my brother's face, he's radiant.

    " Christie has just called me, she said she'd had a bad spell and..."

    " And I'm going to be the youngest and most handsome uncle in town," I cut him off.

   "  Why do you always do that?"  It ruins it.

     " Come here and give me a hug, you're going to be a great dad, congratulations, I'm very excited about this unique news."

    Just then, the whole company hears the good news, and his secretary enters the room with a blue cake, and the other employees outside, overjoyed, celebrate, I wonder how she did it so quickly.  

  Back at the hospital, waiting for further information, all we know is that she and the baby are fine, but there's something the doctor won't tell us, they've ordered a variety of tests, and they're avoiding talking before the results are in, my brother won't sit still, the doctor is a family friend, my mother is trying to find out more information from him and my father is standing firm and unwavering, looking at one point absorbed.

     "Dad," I hug him without saying anything.

    " I feel there's something wrong, son, it was the same with your mother when she was pregnant with both of you... I can't watch my son go through the same suffering" he sits down and rests his head in his hands, while Siena calms my brother down.

    " Aren't you the one who says, nothing is said until it's said and nothing is done until it's done? So let's wait for the doctors to say something, and Heinrich is certainly doing everything he can to give us good news..."