My short stories

Baby

Note:Nikki and Brianna may be OOC.

Nikki Maxwell had never been so irritated in her entire life. And this time, her annoyance wasn't caused by her bratty sister, Brianna or her arch-nemesis, Mackenzie Hollister.

It was caused by a screaming infant in a crib. Why is there a baby? Well, Mrs. Maxwell was babysitting her friend's baby.

Little Timothy Samuels, or Tim for short, had curly blonde hair and dark brown eyes. All of the Maxwell family adored him.

Mrs. Samuels had to leave town for a business trip and her husband was at work every day, so he was not an option. Mrs. Maxwell had suggested that she babysit Tim, which Mrs. Samuels had happily agreed to.

Anyway, Nikki was annoyed by Tim's constant crying. He was always crying, no matter what was going on.

That particular day was a Saturday. Nikki's father had appointments all day and her mother was at the mall catching up with her cousins. Nikki was the one responsible for looking after Brianna and Tim.

As much as Nikki adored Tim, his crying was really irritating. Even Brianna was constantly annoyed by the crying.

'Can you get the baby to shut up?' Brianna yelled now. 'Miss Penelope and I are trying to have a tea party here!'

Miss Penelope is Brianna's hand puppet/imaginary friend. By hand puppet, I don't mean a sock that is being used as a puppet. Miss Penelope is a face drawn on Brianna's right hand. She called the puppet Miss Penelope because according to Brianna, she was borned by a pen.

'I'm trying!' Nikki yelled back. 'But I don't even know what's wrong with him.

Nikki tried to check if Tim was hungry. But when she tried to give him a bottle, he slapped it away.

Nikki checked Tim's diaper, but it was clean. She wondered if he was bored, but no, he wasn't. Nikki tried to soothe Tim to sleep, but he just cried louder.

Unable to stand the noise anymore, Brianna came into the living room, looking cross. 'How long until Tim quiets down?' she asked.

'I don't know,' said Nikki. 'I can't figure out what he wants.'

'How is he not exhausted from crying?' asked Brianna. 'Miss Penelope is really cranky now.'

By 'Miss Penelope', Nikki was certain that Brianna was referring to herself. But she was used to Brianna making those references.

'If only Tim can talk, he would be able to tell us what's wrong instead of screaming his lungs out,' said Nikki.

Brianna sighed. She hovered Miss Penelope over Tim's head and said, 'Be quiet!'

Just then, an incredible thing happened. Tim immediately stopped crying and started giggling instead. Nikki and Brianna looked at each other in surprise.

'I think that Tim likes Miss Penelope,' said Nikki. 'Keep making her speak.'

Brianna continued talking as Miss Penelope. At one point, she tried to sing using Miss Penelope. But Brianna's voice was horrible, so Nikki covered her ears.

Tim didn't seem to care though. He kept on giggling and clapping his tiny hands. There was no doubt about it; he was enjoying the entertainment.

After what seemed like forever, Tim actually fell asleep. Nikki and Brianna stared at him in disbelief.

'I don't believe it,' said Brianna. 'He actually fell asleep.'

'Yeah,' said Nikki. 'This is the quietest he's been all day.'

Nikki and Brianna peeked at Tim in his crib. He was sleeping peacefully with his thumb in his mouth. The two sisters felt charmed by his sweet face.

'Awwwww,' said the two sisters. After all, here was a cute baby sleeping cutely. How can they not be swooned?

'So are you going to continue your tea party?' asked Nikki.

Brianna slumped. 'I don't think so. I'm exhausted.'

'Me too,' said Nikki.

When the Maxwell parents returned home, they found Tim sleeping in his crib and their two daughters doing the same on the couch.

'Awww,' said Mr. Maxwell. 'Our daughters are sleeping like angels. The baby must be influencing them.'

Mrs. Maxwell chuckled. 'Yeah. All the same, I will be relieved when the baby goes back home. Taking care of a baby is no piece of cake, you know.'

Mr. Maxwell nodded. 'Indeed.'