Someone to Love

The sound of the doorbell caused the little girl with light brown ringlets to clutch her mother’s skirt.  She has her plump little thumb securely tucked into her rosebud mouth.  The doorbell rings again as her mommy cautiously looks out the peep hole on the door.  A man in a light blue uniform is holding a package wrapped in brown paper and secured with twine. 

            “What do you want?” she inquires through the partially opened door still secured with a door chain. 

            “Package for Donna Straight,” replied the man in the blue uniform.

            “Please just leave it in front of the door,” Donna replies.

            “I’m sorry,” the man said, “but the package has to be signed for.”

            “Can you slip the clipboard through the crack in the door?” she pleaded.

            Slipping the clipboard through the crack, he instructed her to sign her full name on line 26.  “Thank you,” he responded as she handed the man back his clipboard.

            Donna immediately closed the door, waited and watched through the peephole until she saw the doors to the elevator on her 8^th floor apartment building close.  She slowly took the chain off her door, opened it slowly and peered into the long hallway to make sure it was empty.

            The package was heavy she decided as she picked it up and hurried back into her apartment.  With the door securely shut, the chain replaced and the two locks, she had begged the apartment manager to install, snug into their cavity in the door frame, she released her breath.  She didn’t realize that she was holding her breath until she felt the warm air leave her mouth.  She noticed that her hands were shaking and her heart was pounding so loud in her chest she was afraid it would erupt from her rib cage.

            After a few shallow breaths, she looked down at the package she was holding in her hand.  The name on the package read Lisa Straight % Donna Straight at her new address.  No one knew her address yet and when she looked at the sender’s name, a scream rose in her throat.  She felt the room start to spin.  The next thing she knew, Lisa who was still clutching her skirt was wailing, “Mommy, Mommy.”

            Donna opened her eyes and saw the dark brown eyes of her precious daughter searching her face.  Donna tried to smile so she could reassure her young daughter that she was indeed okay.

            “Oh, sweetie!  Mommy’s so sorry she scared you.  I just fell down.  Remember when we play the game where we say ‘ashes, ashes, all fall down’?” she inquired of her large eye daughter.  Lisa nodded her head.  “Well, Mommy just decided to fall down.”

            “Can I play too?” Lisa asked now grinning.

            “In a little bit.  Right now Mommy has to get supper ready.  Why don’t you go to your brand-new bedroom and find a couple of stories that we can read tonight before bed?  They are in a box in the corner of your bedroom.  All your favorite stories are in there.  Okay?”

            “Okay Mommy.  Can you read me three stories tonight?”  She asked trying to make only three fingers stick straight out.

            “Well . . . if you’re really good.”

            “I’m good, I’m good Mommy,”