Small

Heaven

I wasn't surprised that Darren's mom said yes to babysitting me. My first time meeting her went over better than I thought so I knew she'd be up for watching me. I just hoped it wouldn't be weird for either of us.

I wasn't used to anyone else taking care of me. When I lived with Owen, it was always him that did everything. Sometimes his friends would give me food but any diaper changing or bathing was done by him only. It had become the same with Darren though it seemed like he wanted to. the roles were the same but Darren did it better.

He did everything better.

It was hard to leave him and trust that he would come back. I wanted the weekend to be over with so I could be back home again but I knew spending the time with Evelyn wouldn't be so bad. It was just a change I never had to deal with before.

Living the life that I did, I realized I didn't like change. I liked knowing what was going to happen and when so I could be prepared for it. Surprises were nice but only if it was in the form of food or a stuffed animal. Anything more, anything big, was too much.

I watched Darren back out of the driveway as he left, holding Ted tight to my chest. I hated that he had to leave but I knew his work was important. It wasn't like he could say no.

"Honey, he's not going to come back any faster if you keep watching out the window."

I frowned. I wanted him to turn around in the road and come back but I knew that wasn't going to happen. She was right and I needed to keep myself busy so time would pass by faster.

I walked away from the window and sat down on the couch.

"What do you want to do? We have a few hours before dinner."

"Will you play with me?"

She smiled at me. "Grab some of your toys. Darren said you brought quite a few."

It was clear that Darren didn't know how to pack a kid like me. I wasn't too sure either. So we just packed everything we could think I needed. Evelyn thought it was funny how much we brought, as if I were moving in. The thought scared me but I knew she only meant it as a joke.

I set Ted on the couch and walked over to the pile of toys that we had brought along. I gathered up as many blocks as I could and carried them to the middle of the room. I dumped them on the carpet before going back for another armful.

Evelyn laughed. "Do you think you brought enough toys?"

"We didn't know how to pack."

"You don't go away from home too often, do you?"

I shook my head. "This is sort of my first sleepover ever."

She sat down on the floor across from me. "I hope it lives up to your expectations then."

---

Evelyn sat on the bed behind me as she ran her fingers through my wet hair. She had given me a bath after dinner and said she would do my hair for me. I was definitely going to have to get her to show Darren how it was done sometime.

She was slow and gentle with me and I realized that was what I needed in every aspect of my life. I wasn't used to life in the real world yet and I needed some time to ease my way into it.

I closed my eyes and focused on the feeling her fingers in my hair gave me. It was so peaceful and I knew I would love every minute of it. She seriously needed to teach Darren how to do it.

Her fingers paused and I frowned. I opened my eyes and turned to look at her.

"Aly, are you okay to sleep by yourself tonight?" She asked with scrunched eyebrows.

Being in a strange place made me nervous. I hated when the lights went out and I couldn't see what was going on around me. I felt even less sure of what would happen in a situation like that.

"You could sleep in my room with me if that would help."

"Y-you don't mind?"

She smiled. "If it makes you more comfortable, it's not a problem at all."

I looked down at the blanket under me. I felt so stupid not being able to sleep alone. It shouldn't have been an issue and I hated that I was making it one.

"Do you share the room with Darren?"

"Sometimes. After Owen came over, I didn't want to be alone. Daddy... Darren said he would keep me safe."

"I'm glad you feel okay with him."

I looked up at her, suddenly realizing what I said. I felt bad saying it in front of her when she was related to both of them. "I-I'm sorry. I didn't mean to-"

"No, honey. It's okay. You're allowed to feel how you feel."

Her words were comforting and I knew I wouldn't forget them for a long time. It calmed me down a good bit and I turned to face her. "Thank you for letting me stay here."

"Don't mention it. You're always welcome here. You're my little girl now."

---

Darren got back not long after lunch. Normally that would have been my nap time but I begged Evelyn to let me stay awake so I could wait for him. There'd be plenty of time to sleep once he was back.

I was sitting on the couch watching tv when he pulled up to the house. I had barely gotten to the /window to watch him walk in when the door opened. And I had run to the window, too.

Darren smiled when he saw me and I went to him, hugging him tightly.

"Did you have fun with my mom?"

I nodded, my head pressed against his chest. He was still in his work clothes and it was one of the few times I saw him dressed nicer than just a nice t-shirt or polo shirt. And I liked it.

He lifted his arms from behind me and carefully held onto a brown cardboard box, a blue grocery bag hanging from his wrist.

"Daddy, what's in your bag?"

He laughed and shifted so the bag moved closer to me. I peered inside and saw a container of ice cream. It was the kind with white, brown, and pink ice cream all in one container.

I gasped in excitement. "You got ice cream!"

"I wanted to do something for you since you were so understanding about me going away for the night."

I hugged him again, nearly knocking him off of his feet. "Thank you, daddy."

"Carefully, baby. I don't want to drop the pizza."

"You got pizza too? I think I'm in heaven."

---

Edited 6/29/22