Carrie stood in her living room in front of her mom and daughter with tears spilling out of her eyes and off her face. She bit her lip and exhaled deeply.
"I lost."
The words rolled off her tongue in a squeaky high voice. Her purse dropped out of her hand and hit the floor. Never in her life had she felt as defeated and hurt as she did at that moment.
"I lost." Her voice cracked as she uttered the words again. This time, she couldn't keep it in and let out a sob, her head falling into her hand as she crumbled in tears.
Carole sat frozen in shock on the couch. This was the last thing she expected, the last thing anyone had expected. Everyone thought Carrie would win without a doubt.
She watched her daughter break completely in front of her and she had absolutely no idea how to make it better.
"Mommy what's wrong?" Maddy stood up from the couch and walked over to her mom.
Carrie took a deep breath and tried to regain her composure as she sat down in the chair beside her. She pulled Maddy over to her and lifted her onto her lap.
"Just let mommy hold you for a minute." She whispered through her tears. She held her daughter as close to her as possible and took in the feeling one last time. The tears poured out of her eyes.
She looked up at her mom, who sat watching them with tears in her eyes. The sight shattered Carole's heart, she'd never seen Carrie so hurt in thirty two years.
"How did this happen?" Carrie sobbed, pulling Maddy even tighter towards her.
Carole opened her mouth to reply, but didn't say anything. She had no clue what to say.
"Look at me sweetie." Carrie loosened her grip on Maddy so that she could sit up to face her.
"I want you to know that I love you more than anything in this entire world. You are the best thing I've ever done and the best thing that's ever happened to me. No matter what, remember that your mother loves you so much and she always will. You're going to do extraordinary things one day and blossom into an amazing young woman. Always keep God first and always be kind, the world needs more people like you. I love you so much. Promise me you'll never forget that sweetheart. Okay?" Tears streamed down Carrie's face as she held Maddy's shoulders and lightly caressed her cheek.
Maddy nodded even though she had no idea what was wrong. "I love you too mama."
Carrie pulled her back into her arms and squeezed her tight again.
How had this happened?
Just a year ago, Matt, Carrie, and Maddy were the perfect family. They were happy and everything was perfect, or at least she thought it was. She had no clue what was coming for her.
She and Matt had always been the perfect couple and Maddy had been their perfect child. They were the perfect family.
"Here she is Carrie. Madison Grace, 6 pounds 7 ounces, 19 inches long, born at 5:52pm." The nurse smiled, entering Carrie's hospital room.
Carrie smiled, adjusting her position so that she was sitting up in bed.
"Congratulations." The woman smiled again, gently setting Madison in Carrie's arms.
Immediately, tears filled Carrie's eyes when she saw her daughter for the first time. She was tiny, the pink hospital blanket swallowed her small body.
"Hi sweetheart." Carrie put her finger over Madison's tiny hands and felt her little fingers wrap around her big one.
"Matt, she's perfect." Carrie choked, looking over at her husband and smiling. She scooted over to the side of the bed and let Matt sit next to her in bed. He wrapped his arm around Carrie and pulled her close, putting his other hand on top of hers that held Madison's.
"Look what we did Matt, we made this. We did it." Carrie said with tears in her eyes. A couple ran down her face.
"I love you so much, I'm so proud of you Carrie." Matt kissed the side of her head and smiled.
Carrie's life was finally complete. She had the perfect career, the perfect husband, and now, the perfect daughter. Everything was perfect.
But it wasn't. Nothing was perfect. Now, she was divorced. Now, she'd lost custody of her own daughter. Now, she had nothing.
