The Unexpected

By: Kelian Montanez

Ever since I grew up in Ecuador, I was happy. I was happy to be here, I was happy with my family, I was a happy 4 year old. I had friends in school, I had friends outside of school, I had friends in my neighborhood, I had friends everywhere. I danced, I sing, and listen to Spanish music. I loved everything. Especially my family. I lived with my grandmother, which I thought was my mother and my grandfather, which I thought was my dad, my aunt and uncle, which I thought were my siblings. I grew thinking this way. I was happy. Now, why was I happy if my parents aren't actually my parents, they were just my grandparents. That's the thing, I was a little girl who never really cared about thinking that way. I grew up in Ecuador for 8 years, and I was the

happiest little girl in the world. When, I was eight, everything changed. It started with this phone call. They called my house around eight a clock at night and I picked up.

"Hello," I said in Spanish. They started talking in English, a language I didn't understand. I put my phone to Andres, my uncle, and he of course knows English.

"Yeah... hmm... okay, I'll put you to her... okay... thanks," said Andres.

They handed me the phone and apparently this lady started talking Spanish. There was another lady talking in English as well.

"So, Kelian , who do you live with?" Asked the lady that

talked in Spanish.

"Yes... um... I live with my mom, my dad, my brother and my sister, Andres and Carolina," I said in Spanish.

"Ohh... okay... but honey, they aren't your real parents, they're your grandparents," said the lady.

"Oh, I know..." I said

"Honey, have you met your mother, your real mother?"

"I mean she comes and goes and I usually talk to her on the phone..."

"Oh okay honey, so... have you met your dad?"

" um... no, I don't think so..."

" Oh, okay honey, do you know his name?"

"No..." I said

"Okay, I'm just going to ask you a few questions about you and your family's relationship, is that okay?"

"Yeah okay" I said

"So, how is your relationship with your grandparents?"

"It's good..." I said

"Okay, do they ever scream at you?"

"I mean sometimes, when I'm not doing the right thing, like when I don't behave at school or when I don't do my homework and stuff," I said.

"oh okay honey... um... do they ever hit you?"

"Not really..." I said

All of a sudden the Spanish lady started mumbling in English with the other lady on the phone.

"Okay, so when your mother comes to your house, and flies to your country, does she scream at you or hit you in any type of way?"

" Who?.. My real mother?" I asked

"Yes your mother, Juana" The Spanish lady said

"Umm... no she doesn't."

I lied. She does hit me. But when I do the wrong things. I lied because I didn't want to get my family in trouble. Then the Spanish lady started mumbling in English again. "So... Kelian... what do you think about New York and the United States?" The Spanish lady asked.

I said, " I heard that it's really beautiful... I heard that my real mother, Juana, lives there... I heard that I was born there."

"Oh okay honey, so what do you think about meeting your dad, your real dad?"

"I don't know... does he live there too?" I asked

"Yes, yes he does!" The Spanish lady said

"Am I going to meet him?" I asked.

"Well, we'll see how it goes..."

I always wanted to meet my dad. The thought of knowing him and meeting him was exciting for me. The call ended and I asked my mother who they were.

"They were people that you see in court and lawyers and people who try to solve cases" my mother said.

Since then, I asked myself why they wanted to solve a case that I never even signed up for.

My mother and I were alone in my room and she started telling me all these wonderful stuff about New York.

"I know, Mami, I know it's beautiful, I was born there," I said.

"No, Kelian, you don't know that place. Kelian, you're going to move there."

My heart was pounding when I heard her saying that. My stomach was filled with butterflies of excitement throughout my whole body. Since then, I couldn't stop talking about how I'm going to live in New York. I told my friends, I told my uncles, I even told my bus driver I was moving. I was really excited for that day to come. "Mami, when am I moving to New York?" I asked.