Puzzle Pieces: VII: Closet

I remember i used to love my parents closet. I would drag my blanket with me to their closet and curl up underneath my mom’s clothes and on top of her shoes. That was my happy place. I remember one day i was sitting in their closet when i saw a box i had never seen before. It was gray, there was a latch on the side and a handle on top. Being the nosy kid that i was, I decided to look through it. It was filled with deep green file holders and they were filled with vanilla files. The first two files were filled with pages that were covered with a lot of numbers and letters that i didn’t really understand.

I moved onto the next folder. This one was something that i understood but also didn’t understand. I saw this paper that was slightly yellow and said Certification of Birth in bold black letters . I had never seen it before. At first i was really excited to see the exact time and place i was born. My eye was immediately drawn to my name; however, i didn’t recognize the name that i saw.

My first name was the same; my last name was different. There were two names instead of the one that i knew. My chest was getting tight, each breath was short and panicked. I looked down the page to where it said my parents’ names. Those two were different. I didn't know either of the names that were on place of the names that i knew belonged to my parents - or at least who i thought were my parents. Those strangers’ last names matched what was shown as my name being. My chest tightened further, my hands began to shake, my eyes became clouded by gathering tears. And that's it. That's all i remember. I don't remember why i was in their closet that day or what i did after, or if one of my parents found me and told me that i was adopted. I have no idea. This memory is alone.