Childish

55

The week passed by slowly. Ms. Diane was doing everything she could to keep me entertained and involved at school. She helped me make friends and play with the other kids without being frustrated by their immaturity. It made me realize that it wasn't as hard as I thought it would be.

Maybe Monica was right.

As the days passed, I found it harder to fall asleep at nap time. Knowing that Alex wasn't going to be picking me up made it hard for me to feel comfortable enough to fall asleep. If Ms. Diane wasn't there, I probably wouldn't have napped at all.

I developed severe trust issues after I was taken from Alex. It was hard for me to believe that anyone in Alpine had good intentions. I was shown time and time again that everyone only wanted to hurt me. It wasn't until I was finally reunited with Alex that I felt even a little less guarded. Though I found that even people I knew couldn't be trusted fully.

I must have been so tired that not even movement would wake me up. It wasn't until I'd already been picked up that I stirred enough to open my eyes.

Behind me, I heard the driver's door open. I thought about pretending to be asleep but then I remembered that I was still going to be carried inside. I couldn't walk.

I waited for Ty to come around and get me out of the car with my bear tucked in my arm. When the door opened, I was surprised to see Alex rather than Ty.

"What are you doing here?"

"I thought I'd pick you up early and surprise you."

I looked down at the buckles still locked in place and groaned. "Can you get me out please?"

He chuckled. "Yeah, yeah."

I pushed my arms through the straps at my sides as he unbuckled me. He lifted me out of the car seat and I wrapped my arms around him in a tight embrace. I didn't think I'd actually miss him as much as I did but seeing him after several days apart showed that I did.

He laughed. "I take it you missed me."

I nodded.

"Are you ready to see the baby?"

To my surprise, I was nervous. I wasn't sure how this new baby would take to me and it wasn't like we could just get rid of it if that were the case.

"What if he doesn't like me?"

"He'll like you eventually. I mean, he has to grow up at some point."

I narrowed my eyes at him. He wasn't helping things at all.

He laughed and reached into the car to get my diaper bag. "Relax, Lyla. You worry too much."

"I don't think I do."

He shut the door to the car and started towards the house. Without realizing it, I gripped his jacket tighter in my hands.

I knew he was just a baby but I was worried he would cry every time he was around me. I didn't want to upset him just by being me.

Alex opened the door and I looked around for the baby. We went to the living room and I saw Naomi sitting on the couch.

She turned when we came in and she smiled. "Hi, sweetheart. It's good to have you home again."

I always knew Naomi was nice and that she cared about me but it still caught me off guard to hear that she missed me. I thought they might have enjoyed time away from me to focus on their baby.

"Do you want to see the baby?"

I could hardly see him around her body. I saw his feet covered by his clothing. The rest of him was covered by a blanket.

I nodded. I had to get it over with at some point.

Alex walked around and set me down on the couch beside Naomi. It was then that I finally got a good look at the baby.

He just... looked like a baby. There weren't any distinguishable features about him that stuck out to me. I was sure Alex and Naomi saw them but I didn't.

He was sleeping in Naomi's arms with a blanket wrapped around him. His hands were covered with tiny mittens that seemed pretty weird to me.

"Lyla, this is Cooper."

I looked at Naomi for a second before I looked back at the baby. Baby Cooper. I'd never met anyone named Cooper before but I liked it. It wasn't old-sounding like most names were.

"Do you want to hold him?"

I raised my eyebrows. "Can I?" I wasn't sure they would want me touching him or holding him or coming close to him until he was able to crawl. He seemed so small and breakable.

She laughed. "Well, yeah, he needs to get used to being around his big sister."

I knew they wouldn't make me feel alienated in any way yet I was still surprised to hear her say that to me. Almost as if I wasn't expecting it.

I sat back on the couch, my feet just barely dangling over the cushion.

Naomi turned to me and slowly set the baby in my lap. "Make sure you hold his head."

I was too nervous to nod my head. I slid my right arm under his head and did my best to hold him in a way that would prevent him from moving. My normal, teenage self would have been able to hold him. Hell, even my last body would have. But baby me struggled. Even being only a few pounds, it was a lot for me.

Alex sat down on the coffee table across from me. "What do you think, Ly?"

"He's heavy."

Naomi put her arms under the baby and lifted the weight from me. "Why don't I hold him and you can talk to him?"

I hated to admit defeat but I didn't want to hurt the baby. They definitely wouldn't have forgiven me if I had.

The baby stirred and his pacifier fell from his mouth. He started to cry.

I reached down to the pacifier where it dangled between me and Naomi and put it back in his mouth. He stopped crying but opened his eyes. He looked right at me and I stared back, unsure of what to do. I didn't expect the baby to look at me until he was much older. Clearly, I didn't know as much about babies as I thought.

"I think he likes you." Naomi leaned down and spoke quietly to me.

I looked between her and the baby. Seeing him wasn't as scary as I thought. I knew it was only the first time I'd met him and it had only lasted a few minutes. But I didn't think having a brother would be so bad after all.

---

We finally get to meet the baby! What do you guys think so far? I know it isn't much but this is setting up for the rest of the story. Also, what do you think of the name 'Cooper'? I wanted to find a good name that wasn't common and didn't sound too much like anyone else's name. I hope you guys are liking this story. I think it's one of my favorites I've ever written.