The Boy She Illegally Brought To The Lavender Field (bwwm)

Page 78

Annie woke up and stared at the wall. She wondered again what to do about her father. She wished she could do anything. She wanted to lay in bed and wallow for the day but knew she had to help her mama with breakfast. So she got up, brushed her teeth, and headed towards the kitchen.

"Good morning, mama..." Annie greeted as she wiped her eyes and entered the kitchen.
Her hands fell to her sides as she finished cleaning the sleep from her eyes.
Only to see that the kitchen was empty.

She checked the clock on the wall. It was 9:30 in the morning. Which was actually much later than they'd usually get breakfast started.

Annie was confused.
She walked back down the hallway to her mother's room and knocked.
"Mama?"
She didn't get an answer.
"Do you want me to get breakfast started?" she asked.
Again there was no answer.

She wondered if her mama was still asleep.
So she reached for the door handle to see if her hypothesis was correct.

She cracked the door open to glance inside.
Only to see an empty made up bed with a teddy bear on top.
She opened the door further in confusion.

Her eyes glanced around. Could her mother have gone to the store? Not without waking Annie up first.
She noticed the room looked emptier than usual.

She saw a piece of paper on the bed against the teddy bear.
She walked over to it and took it.
"I love you. Go be happy babygirl."
Annie panted in disarray.

She left with the door still opened and hurried to the phone.
The device pressed against her ear as she dialed.

It rang.

"Hello?" Daniel answered.
"Daniel, is my mama over there?" Annie asked.
"No, she isn't."
"Have you seen her at all today?" she wondered.
"No. Was I supposed to?"
"Can you ask your daddy if he's seen her?"
"He's not here either."
Annie froze.
As did Daniel.

"Have you...seen him at all today?" Annie asked.
"No..."
"Is...his room emptier than usual?"
Daniel thought it was an odd question but he still dropped the phone and let it hang from the wall as he hurried up the stairs to check.

He opened his father's door and saw the empty room.

He didn't think it looked different. He went to the closet and saw that all of the clothes were gone.

His brows furrowed.

He then went to the bathroom.

His father's toothbrush and paste were missing.

Daniel stood there confused.
He backed out of the bathroom then turned around to leave the room.
He found his way down the stairs and grabbed the phone again.
"Is nanny's room emptier than usual?" he asked.
"Yea..."

Both lines were silent.

"He never told you he was leavin'?" Annie asked.
"No. You?"
"No."

They were quiet again.

"Well what now?" Annie wondered.
"The house is mine anyway."
"Aren't you worried?"
"About what?"
"Our parents are gone."
"Annie."
"Yea?"
"We're adults, darlin'. I have a house now and I'm a working man. You know how to cook and clean. Our parents have been adults for forever. They'll be fine. They know what they're doin'."

Annie heard him but she still couldn't help but stress.

First her daddy and now her mama? Where is everyone going?

"Do you wanna come over here?" Daniel offered.
"What if my mama comes back?" Annie asked.
"She'll know where to find you."
Annie thought on it.
"At least you wouldn't be alone."
"Don't you have to go to work?"
"Only one. And not for a while. I'm trying to decide which to keep now that I got the house and it's paid off. I don't need so many jobs anymore."
"Yea..."
"Are you coming?" he asked again.
"Yea. Will you come get me? Or are you just gonna make me walk?" she teased.
"What kind of man would I be if I made a beautiful woman walk the streets alone?"
"A single one."
He snickered. "I'll be over soon."
"Should I bring anything?"
"A change of clothes."
"How long will I be staying?"
"Even if it's just today, you need a change of clothes." he chuckled.
"DANIEL!"
"I'll be there in a bit."
Annie rolled her eyes. "Okay. I'll see you then."
The two hung up.

Both stood there and took in the emptiness of their homes. For some reason, it felt emptier than it usually did when their family was gone. It felt...

Deserted.

•~~~•

Annie and Daniel arrived at his home and both got out of the truck.

Daniel went to the bed of the vehicle to grab Annie's bag before they headed inside.

"It's quiet." Annie stated after the two entered.
"It's empty."
"How long do you think he'll be gone?"
"I don't know. He didn't tell me anything. I don't know why he left but it's been hours since I last saw him."
"Hm."
"When did you last see your mama?"
"Last night."
"She didn't tell you she was leaving?"
"The last thing I heard her say to me was that she'd get started on dinner soon. You know she didn't even speak while all of us had dinner. We just ate. She went to bed while I washed the dishes."
"You can stay here as long as you want."
"I only brought clothes for one night." Annie argued.
"I'll take you back to get more." He kissed her cheek then carried her bag upstairs to his bedroom.

Annie stood in the middle of the floor. She felt like she and Daniel were alone. Too alone. And she wondered why and what happened.

She heard footsteps coming back down the stairs.

Daniel stood in front of her. "What's wrong?"
"Everyone's gone..." she whined.
She looked at him and he saw how damp her eyes became.
His arms wrapped around her and pulled her close. The two held onto one another as Annie rested her head on Daniel's shoulder.
"Not everyone." he replied.