"Maya? Is everything okay? Why are you calling?" Her mother sounded worried. Maya never called during work hours; she knew how important every minute of her mother's job was.
"Mom," Maya said. Her voice broke on the word. "Mom, something happened."
"What? What happened? Are you hurt?"
"No, no, I am not hurt. Mom, I went to the audition. The one at the music academy. I told you about it last week."
There was silence on the other end. Maya had not told her mother very much about the audition: she had been afraid to get her hopes up, afraid to make her mother worry about dreams that might never come true.
"I remember," Lynn said slowly. "You said you were thinking about going."
"I went," Maya said. "And Mom, they gave me a scholarship. A full scholarship. Everything is paid for: tuition, a place to live, everything."
More silence. Then Maya heard a sound she had not heard in a long time: her mother was crying.
"Mom? Mom, are you okay?"
"I am okay," Lynn said between sobs. "I am more than okay. Oh, Maya... your father would be so proud. He would be so, so proud."
Now Maya was crying, too. They sat there, mother and daughter, separated by miles of city streets, weeping into their phones.
"I have to go back to work," Lynn finally said, her voice still thick with tears. "But tonight, when I get home, you have to tell me everything. Every single detail. Promise me."
"I promise," Maya said.