6.11: End of Life

NOTE: The play center was made by InvisibleLyndz and edited by yasukie7270 and can be downloaded here.

   "Can you believe it Hazel?" I asked her as we began walking down the sidewalk. "Daddy's been playing with you more. He takes you to the park every Saturday and everything!"
   "It's fun." Even tough I couldn't see her face, I could tell that she was smiling.  After my deal with Booker, he transformed into father of the year. He bought Hazel knick-knacks and was an affectionate daddy, always hugging her and playing patty cake with her. I wasn't planning another child until I was at least twenty-five, but I was glad that Booker was acting better. If a baby was what it would take, I was willing to grow out family.
    "And you're talking like a big girl!" I exclaimed. Hazel was talking better, she was now saying complete words and not cutting out syllables. I was proud of how much progress my baby girl had made, Booker was shocked beyond belief. He assumed that he'd have to hire someone to fix her speech when in reality all it took was time. Seeing Booker's shocked face was the most hilarious thing I'd seen in months.

   "And now that you're going to be a big sister to a baby boy or girl, life is better than ever." I smiled at the thought of it. Hazel was going to be going to be five in one month, go to kindergarten in three, and be a big sister in four. Booker and I had decided to keep the gender of the baby a secret, since we did with Hazel.
    "I am gonna be a good sister."
    "You will be! You'll play with the baby and read to it."
    "I like reading stories."
    "I do too. reading is fun, isn't it?"
    "Yeah." She laughed. "I read in school."
    "You will."
    "With Marco?"
    "Yeah. With Marco." I talked to Lana Tahan, his mother, and luckily Appaloosa Plains only had one elementary, one middle, and one high school. Since Marco was three weeks older than Hazel, they'd be going into school together.

  "Play center!" She called out. Appaloosa Plains Bright Beginnings was the town's daycare and child fun center. They had mommy-baby groups, maternity yoga, and all sorts of activities. Lana and I had signed up for a mother-toddler sign language class.
  "Ready to sign?"
  "Sign together, sign forever, it's time to sign!" She sang the song that the teacher started each session with.

    I parked the stroller in the stroller parking space and picked up Hazel. We walked- well I walked, she was still into being carried- into the building.
   "Baby is kicking."
   "The baby does that." The first time Hazel felt her younger sibling move inside the womb, she freaked out and thought something was wrong. Luckily, Booker explained to her that there was a baby inside mommy and that everything was okay. "Hello," I greeted the lady at the front desk, "We're here for Signing Class."
    "I'm sorry, it's three-thirty and class ends at three. But Hazel can still play until we close at five."
    "Thanks." I smiled at her, trying to remember her name. Unfortunately I couldn't, so I just turned to the right and walked through the glass sliding doors to the toddler play area.
    "Let's play music."
    "Alrighty." I set her down on the rainbow carpeting, as she toddled to the xylophone.

   "Do, re, mi, la, la, um..." I began singing. I had no idea what came next, luckily Hazel swooped in to save me.
   "Mary had a little lamb, little lamb, little lamb. And little lamb loved to dance and moo and sing and la, la, la."
   "La, la, la. Mary had a little lamb, little lamb, little lamb. Everywhere that Mary went-"
   "No, mommy! It goes like this, Mary had a little dancing lamb, dancing lamb, dancing lamb. Mary sand and lamby danced, la, la, la."
   We sang and danced for a little while longer, until soon it was closing time. We had to leave and I buckled Hazel back into her stroller, ready for a leisurely stroll home. We missed signing class today, but there would always be tomorrow. I was planning on taking a field trip to the center with my daycare group. I was watching seven kids, not including Hazel now.
  When we got home, I began reading a new story to Hazel. It was a new, recently published one. One of the mothers of the kids I watched was an author who wrote motivational stories about a kite. Yes, it was a little... interesting. Unique, but the mother gave them to be for free if I agreed to strongly recommend the picture book to the other parents. Suddenly I felt something moving in my abdomen. The smell of blood... gasping for air... vision growing fuzzy. "I love you, Hazel." I whispered.

Hazel's POV...

   "Momma... why won't you read? Momma, why are you bleeding? Where's your boo-boo? You kiss my boo-boos and make them better." Momma read to me. Why wasn't she? I looked the pretty pictures, wishing I knew more than just a few words. What was happening to mommy? I stood up, moving to mommy. She had to be okay. Her boo-boo looked bad, though.

   "Wake up!" I screamed. "Read! next-next! Read more."  I leaned down to hug mommy. "Please read? I said please, momma." I felt the red cover me. Why would momma not wake up? Why? I loved momma. She said she loved me. You don't leave when you love. Momma loves me. "Mommy!" I cried. "Wake up. Daddy. Hi." He was going to help mommy wake up.
  "Kayleigh? Hazel? Hazel..." He look sad. He pulled out his phone and began talking to people. "Hi, yes... I don't know how long. Quick! She's pregnant. We need- address. It's," He kept talking and leaned down and sat next to mommy. "Kayleigh, no. I love you. The baby. No... I wanted another. Kayleigh, I'm sorry. I love you. Please." Daddy began crying. Daddy doesn't cry. Daddy's sad.

   Daddy held me. He picked me up as people came to get mommy. They took her away as daddy sat and cried while holding me. I got red all over him, but still he cried. Mommy was gone with the people and daddy buckled me into the car as he kept crying. Why was he crying? Should I be crying? I love mommy.