Looking Through the Cracks

Chapter 10: Lost and Found

The whole car ride to Gorham Ivy cried. She didn't want to hurt B, but it was the only way to stop herself from hurting him later on. It's for the better.

As Ivy reached Wildcat, she could see children running all around the parking area. It was nearly impossible for her to find a place to park. Eventually, she found a place located in the farthest corner of the lot. As she was climbing out her Camry another car came swooping into the parking space next to her. Jolted by the quick appearance of the car, Ivy froze.

"Oh! I'm so sorry!" said a man as he quickly exited his car. "Are you okay?"

"Oh." Ivy's body slowly thawed. She shook her head. "Yeah, I'm fine. I was just caught off guard. Thank you, though." Ivy was about to walk away when she heard a sweet dainty voice speaking to her.

"You're really pretty."

Ivy turned around to find a bald little girl beaming at her. She was beautiful. Her bright blue eyes were gleaming with joy. She was obviously here for the "Weekend of Fun." Ivy crouched down to the little girl's height so they could be at eye level.

"Well thank you," said Ivy. "You're very pretty too." The more she looked at the little girl, she couldn't help but smile at her. This girl was suffering from cancer, yet she looked like she was the happiest kid in the world. The glee that poured from this little girl made Ivy want to shield her from all the bad in the world.

"Thank you." The little girl smiled again. "What's your name? Mine's Allison."

"Ivy." She couldn't help but chuckle at how social Allison was.

"That's a pretty name. Are you a princess?"

"Come on, Honey. Let's not bother this lady. She probably has some very important things to do." The father came around the car, took his daughter's hand, and began leading her to the building. He looked back and mouthed "sorry" to Ivy.

"Actually I am!" Ivy shouted to Allison and her father. They both turned around and looked at Ivy. "It's a secret though. You see, soon I'm going to be a queen, and I'm going to need a princess to take my place. I'm on a quest to find the perfect match, but they can't know who I am or it'll blow my cover. Can I trust you to keep my secret?" Ivy gave a conspiratorial wink.

Allison was grinning even wider now. "Yes!" She victoriously punched her little fists into the air. "I knew you were a princess!" Immediately Allison took Ivy's hand and began leading her to the building with her father. "Wait. Where's your pretty dress?"

"I had to leave it at the castle so no one would recognize me."

Nodding along to the very reasonable excuse Ivy provided, the little girl continued to pull Ivy along with her. "You're coming with us!" she hollered. It was abundantly clear that Ivy did not have a choice in the matter.

When the three reached the building Ivy was sent into a whirlwind of playful chaos. Allison dragged Ivy along to every activity and never once let go of her hand. At the main entrance, little kids were getting their faces painted, and Allison made it her goal to get a butterfly painted on his face before they did anything else.

Looking around the room, Ivy could see hundreds of kids running about, their faces covered in glittery paint and chocolate smears. Every child there was suffering from a form of cancer, and even though they had to be suffering, not a single child looked unhappy. Instead, they all grinned widely as they ran from station to station.

Ivy was so engulfed by their peaceful innocence that she didn't even realize Allison had finished getting her face painted. She finally noticed when she heard Allison say, "Look, Daddy! Don't I look pretty?"