A New Family

     Anil runs a small contracting business.  He had married a woman named Tricia, and together they had a daughter, Zeena.  With his business doing well, and a growing family, Anil felt like the luckiest person in the world.  One day, however, his wife died suddenly from an undiagnosed heart defect.
     Anil’s grief overwhelmed him, and he began to drink heavily.  He nearly slipped into alcoholism. His daughter saved him.  One day, he awoke from a drunken stupor to see his young daughter looking at him.  Her eyes were filled with a heart-breaking mix of grief and fear.  She had lost her mother, and now, she was watching her father slip away from her.
     Anil hugged his daughter tightly, apologizing to her and swearing never to drink again.  From then on, he focused all his energy towards being the best father he could for her.  He dedicated himself to raising her the best he could.
     Zeena saw the work, and sacrifice her father put in for her, and felt a deep love and gratitude for him.  She even convinced him to take some time for himself, and encouraged him to go out and meet new people.
     With Zeena’s encouragement, Anil eventually met Rose, a recent divorcee who was also raising a daughter.  Anil and Rose formed a friendship over their common struggle of being a single parent.  Rose was surprised and happy that Anil often turned to her with questions about the needs of a young girl.  Over time, their friendship deepened and the two fell in love, eventually marrying.
     It has been a few months since their wedding and their newly blended family is still finding its footing.  Rose’s daughter Dixie, and Anil’s daughter Zeena get along well enough, but there are still issues.
     Zeena loves Rose, and can see that her father is truly happy with her.  However, Zeena still carries a deep love of her own mother, Tricia.  Zeena understands that accepting Rose as her step-mother isn’t a betrayal of her love for Tricia.  However, understanding something in your head is very different than accepting it in your heart.  Zeena still finds herself holding back from Rose and feels guilty about it.
     Dixie on the other hand does not completely trust Anil.  Dixie’s own father was emotionally negligent of Dixie and her mother.  Rose, eventually, came to realize that he ex-husband only viewed her and Dixie as trophies.  He had been passionate and loving in the beginning of their relationship.  After ‘winning’ her and the birth of Dixie, that changed.  He simply lost interest in the relationship and went looking for his next conquest.  This deeply hurt Rose.
     When Rose met Anil, she wasn’t looking for a serious relationship, and neither was he.  Anil’s genuine openness and honesty was the reason Rose was able to trust him enough to risk dating.  Rose is extremely happy with her relationship with Anil.
     Dixie remembers how much her father had hurt Rose by basically abandoning her.  Now, Dixie watches Anil for signs that he might do the same.  She wants to trust him, but right now, she isn’t ready.