You Took Them - A Goosebumps Fanfiction

Chapter Four

"I am okay!" Lorraine hollered. The airbag burst. "I am still okay!"

Tamara was giggling. She was having fun with her new friend. She was in the back and tried standing on those little feet. Lorraine watched her in the rear view mirror and awed. She had never seen an infant in real life. She almost did not want to let her go.

Lorraine scrambled out of her car and got Tamara. She held her close so she would not drop her and examined her. "You okay?"

"We are thanks to you," Stine said.

She walked around the car. "I was talking to the...uh..." She forgot her words when she saw Stine. "...h-hi."

Stine's cheeks turned bright red. He pushed his glasses up. "What is your name?"

Zach beat her to it. "It is Lorraine. She is my aunt."

The writer wanted to make a snarky remark about him and her being related. Zach was the reason behind this mess after all. But he was transfixed on the girl in front of him. The most beautiful lady that he had ever seen - despite that she is Zach's aunt. He could not let her go. He took her hand into both of his and smiled.

Why does he sound like Slappy?

"We are grateful for your help...Lorraine. Thank you."

Tamara covered her eyes. She is shy when tons of folks are around.

Hannah could not look away from the cuteness. "May I hold her? I promise to not drop her."

Her dad was about to say no. She was grounded.

"Of course," Lorraine answered. "She is a well-behaved infant. I could not take my eyes off her - which is why I veered off the road. Please do not tell anyone."

Stine chuckled. "Oh, I am excellent at keeping secrets - as long as your nephew does not snoop."

Hannah carefully held Tamara and rocked her. "Hey. I am Hannah. Remember me from earlier?"

Tamara uncovered her eyes and cooed.

"What is your name?"

"Ta...ma...ra."

"Tamara. A beautiful name for a beautiful girl. So sorry that you are caught up in this mess."

"I found her by the ice cream parlor by herself. She is a cold and hungry girl."

Tamara uttered an adorable yawn and laid her head on Hannah's chest. She sucked on her little hand.

"Awe!" the girls said in unison.

Hannah kissed her cheek. "If you did not have a family already, I would ask Dad to adopt you."

What the little human said stunned the group. She put a hand on Hannah's cheek and said, "Mama."

Champ's eyebrows shot up. "Did she say what I think?" He straightened out his suit. "Or am I going crazy?"

She smiled at him. "Crazy."

He glared at her. "Can we leave her?"

Hannah wanted to punch him for suggesting that. "We are not leaving a delicate flower. She has her whole life ahead of her. We cannot let the monsters jeopardize it, especially Slappy."

Tamara mistook Slappy for the word "daddy" and held up her feet. "Daddy."

Hannah played with the tiny hairs on her head. "Awe. I have a daddy too. He is the one with glasses - and does not want me to have a life."

A heavy sigh escaped Stine's mouth. "Do not start. Or I will ground you for life."

Her blood was boiling. "You cannot ground me for life! I will move out."

He grinned. "And where will you stay?"

She wrapped an arm around Zach. "With Zach. He and his mom will proudly take me in."

"You are not staying with that troublemaker, especially a boy."

"Why not stay with me?" Champ piped in. "I know how to party!"

Tamara reached out and grabbed Stine's hand. "Love." She kissed and hugged it. "Grandpa."

Hannah giggled. "Silly girl. He is not your grandpa. He probably does not want to be a grandpa. But I promise to be your mama until we find your family."

The infant grabbed Lorraine's hand and smiled at her. "Grandma."

Lorraine took her back and kissed her forehead. "Yes. I am Grandma. Hmm...I have a feeling that she does not have a family. She is an orphan. Why else would she be calling strangers Mama and Grandma and Grandpa?"

"I would rather her call me Grandpa than Slappy Dad," Stine stated. "I shudder at the thought."

"Slappy would certainly be Worst Dad of the Century," Hannah said. "But you are a close second."

He took offense to that. "How dare you compare me to a narcissist."

"You created him. He looks just like you!"

"He is the side that I never wish to be. When he started taking things too far, I locked him away. I did not want to because...he was the only buddy that I had. I did not want to betray him. But it had to be done." He took his glasses off and rubbed the bridge of his nose. "It is why he is doing this. He is in pain and needs to lash out."

"Who is Slappy?" Lorraine asked.

He put his glasses back on. "Let us just say that Slappy is my son."

"Awe."

"You would not say that if you saw him."

The dumpster suddenly opened. The werewolf growled and jumped out.

"Run!" Stine shouted.
———————
I was happy to be discharged from the hospital. I asked the doctors where my parents and sister were, but they had no clue. So I had to walk home alone - in the dark. I prayed that nothing awful would happen to me. I was scurrying down the sidewalk when I got the bright idea of calling my parents. I contacted Mom first. I hung up when it went to voicemail. I called Dad. He picked up.

"Yes? Who is this?"

The voice sounded off. But I thought nothing of it. Just figured that he had a cold. "Dad. It is me. Shelly."

"Hon. I am not your dad. I am Slappy."