Page 28 of My Little Doe
“I’m with Daxyn, you dumb girl! I care about the baby because it should be mine!” she shouted out, before slapping her hand across her mouth.
“What doesthatmean?” I asked. My heart started beating faster. She waswithDaxyn. None of this made any sense.
“Oh… I… nothing…” she said, before turning around and leaving my room.
I immediately stood up and followed her into the main room. She wasn’t going to force me into a conversation and then run away when it didn't go her way. She plopped onto the couch, arms crossed, cheeks flushed red.
“What did you mean by that? The baby should be yours?” I said, hands on my hips.
“Nothing,” she said.
“That sure wasn’t nothing. You slipped and then ran like a little bitch!” I said.
“Please, I’ve already spoken too much. Just eat the food so you can sleep good and not hear anything you’re not supposed to hear,” she muttered.
“So, you did drug me?” I asked.
“I only do what I’m told.”
“What shouldn’t I hear?”
“Nothing… if you’re not gonna eat, go to bed and leave me to dwell by myself before I get the switch tomorrow,” she said.
I stared at her, my brows furrowed. Nothing made sense, and she left me more turned around than before. Clearly, she shared something that she immediately regretted and shut down. She had been bubbly when she arrived, and now she sat there defeated.
After the longest minute, I broke my stare and turned around and went back to my room.The Lion Kingwas still playing whenI walked back in there. Simba was learning all aboutHakuna Matata. I sat on the bed, with my back pressed against the wall. The sound of the movie faded as my thoughts ran circles around the conversation with Annabelle. Around everything that had been said over the last ten weeks. The movie ended, and I didn’t even remember watching it.
I got up, turned the lights off, and put inSnow White and the Seven Dwarfs. My eyes instantly felt heavy and—
Awooooooooo
Awooooooooo
A-a-awoooooooo
My eyes burst open, and I looked around the room.Snow Whitewas almost over.
The howling came from all over. Some seemed far off into the distance, but every few howls, it seemed like it was in the next room. Goosebumps formed all over my arms. I put one of the pillows over my head, holding it tightly over my ears. My heart was beating faster and harder. I took deep breaths in through my nose and slowly out of my mouth. My heart slowed down.
The howling had stopped. I laid in the dark withSnow Whitestill playing. I pressed my hand flat against my stomach the way I’d started doing when sleep wouldn't come. Then it happened. Not the maybe-flutter of the last few days. Something real. A small rolling push from the inside, gone before I could decide if I'd imagined it. I held my breath and waited. There it was again. I stretched my legs out flat and held as still as I could, as if moving might make it stop. I didn’t know how long I stayed like that.
Eventually, the movie stopped, and the room went silent. Tears rolled down my cheeks. I didn’t want to hand my baby over. I wanted to keep him or her. Every passing day, I loved this little baby more.
I stayed like that until my eyes felt so heavy, and then I pulled the blanket up and went to sleep. I tossed and turned all night. My dreams were vivid and mostly terrifying. Wolves and zombies poured from the woods, chasing me. Annabelle was screaming that this was her baby.
My eyes shot open wide, and I looked around the room. The clock read five forty-five. It was still early, and dark outside. I wasn’t sure if Quinnlyn had already returned or if Annabelle was still out there.
Breakfast usually came around seven. It wasn't as consistent as supper—sometimes closer to eight. I hadn’t wanted to turn the TV on and announce I was awake. I wasn’t sure if I was ready to have another conversation with Annabelle.
The doorknob rattled around, then the door pushed open. I leaned forward on the bed to look out of my door toward the main door. Quinnlyn entered the room with a Styrofoam bowl and a juice box in his hand. His brows were furrowed, and his lips pressed into a tight line. I sat back against the wall. He clearly was not in agoodmood, not that he was ever really in a good mood, but some days were better than others.
He walked into the room, and my head turned toward him. He cocked his head and held up the bowl.
“What’s breakfast this morning?” I asked.
“Hashbrown casserole,” he said.
He walked forward into the room and handed me the bowl.
