Larry Shorts

A Christmas Orange

Heads up I wrote this like 3 years ago and it was on my old account. It's kind of trash but yeh. Its also on my ao3. It's loosely based off a story I read as a kid called Christmas Oranges.

Christmas Day 1884

"Mama Jay?" 3 year old Bleta, or as she preferred to be called, Bebe asked.

"Yes angel, what is it?" Johanna Deakin, owner of Deakin's Home For Girls, replied.

"Santa lefts another pwesent! A baby on the doowr!" She giggled, her brown eyes twinkling.
"There's a baby? Outside? Here?" Johanna questioned, confused.

"Yup! Hurry! You gotsa see!" Bebe squealed tugging her caretaker's sleeve.

"Alright little love, lets go see."
Johanna was shocked at the sight that greeted her at the front door. A tiny baby, who couldn't be more than a day old, lay shivering in only a blanket. The child's tear filled blue eyes stared up at her helplessly, and she was instantly in love.

"Oh you poor dear!" She cooed, scooping the crying baby up in her arms. "It's alright, Mama Jay's gotcha. Let's get you inside where it's safe and warm hm?"

"A baby!!!" 7 year old Danielle squealed, as Johanna returned inside. "She's so cute!"

Johanna smiled, "She's a doll isn't she?"
Bebe and Danielle nodded eagerly.

"I'm going to go change her into some warm clothes and-" Johanna began.

"Can we help?!" Danielle begged.

"Pleasssse?" Bebe added.

Johanna sighed, "Very well. Come along girls."
Johanna lay the baby across the wooden changing table, and found a cloth diaper along with a soft night gown.

"Alright baby, let's get you all changed and warm." She said softly as the baby started to whimper.

Bebe softly caressed the infants tiny head with her chubby little fingers. "Iss okay baby. Bebe is here. And mama Jay. She nice." She assured with a little lisp.

Johanna smiled at the young girl, and gently removed the blanket the baby had been swaddled in. She gasped a little at the sight of the naked infant, for the child she had assumed to be a girl, was in fact, a boy.

"Mama Jay!!" Danielle squealed, "What's wrong with her?! Her privates are weird!"

"Well Dani, there's nothing wrong with him. His privates are different, because he is a boy." She explained.

"A boy?" She asked, "But... this is a girls home."

Over hearing the word boy, 12 year old Eleanor hurried into the room. "There's a boy here! He can't stay! This is a girls home! It's inappropriate!" She huffed, crossing her arms over her chest. "There are some of us, who would feel very uncomfortable with a male around! Taylor and I, are teenagers, and we have, you know, girl issues and-"

"Eleanor. That's enough. He's a BABY. He won't be of any harm to you sweetheart. By the time he is 6, you will be moving away, and besides that, I haven't yet made my decision on whether or not to keep the child."

"Butttt we has to keep him!!" Little Bebe whined, "I wike him!"
Johanna smiled, "We will see my love. We will see."

1893

"Please don't take me!" Louis wailed as social services dragged him from the only place he had known in his short years of life.

"I'm sorry child. But influenza is a serious disease and it's not safe for you to stay with those who are infected."