Sweet Girl

Heal The Wounds

As Lindsey carried Bella down the stairs, Stevie opened the gate. Shulamith awoke and darted over to Stevie, barking excitedly.

"Hi, sweetie," she cooed.

Bella turned away and buried her head into Lindsey's shoulder, covering her ears.

"It's okay!" he chuckled, rubbing her back.

"She just wants to say hello to you, see? Look," He bent down and sat Bella on his knee at the bottom of the staircase. She didn't let her feet touch the ground.

"She won't hurt you, sweetie, she's talking to you!" Stevie interjected, tapping the ground where Bella was to beckon the dog.

"Remember what we did earlier? Put your hand out..." Lindsey picked up Bella's wrist and guided her hand outward for Shulamith to smell. The little creature rushed over, curiously and sniffed Bella's palm. She was amused by the dog licking her hand.

"See? Oh, look, Shulamith likes you a lot! She's giving you lots of kisses!" Lindsey rubbed Bella's middle. Bella slid from his hands and crouched down to greet the dog.

"There's a good girl" Lindsey grunted, standing up again.

"Lindsey?" Stevie began, slotting the tape into the player.

He looked up.

"Should we order a pizza? I figured its best to play safe tonight," she continued, flipping her glasses over her head onto her nose and eyeing the remote control.

"Sure" he replied, offering his hand to Bella.

A whimsical opening tune surrounded the room. Stevie decided to keep the volume low. She sat down on the couch. Bella sat in between the couple, with her feet just about dangling over the edge.

Stevie couldn't help but steal glances of the sweet girl who sat next to her, clutching her Elmo doll, watching the big screen intently. Every so often, Lindsey would do the same, and then smile felicitously at Stevie.

A short way into the film, Bella shuffled around. Then again. Stevie watched her fidgeting.

"Are you okay, sweetie?" she pried. Bella didn't answer. She tugged on her tights at her thighs.

"Honey?" Stevie put her hand on Bella's back, worriedly.

Bella looked up at her tearfully.

"It's okay! What's wrong, sweetie?" she gazed at her, hoping for a response.

Lindsey had his arm stretched along the back of the couch which felt the ricochets of Bella's unrest.

"Here, do you need a hug?" Bella sniffled, shaking her head.

Lindsey looked at Stevie with concern.

"Do you need to go potty?" Stevie asked, more urgently.

Bella's lip quivered as she nodded.

"Oh, well that's okay. Come on, I'll take you." She picked Bella up to take her to the bathroom.

She felt imposed by the size of the little girl. She was scared to hold her, not yet used to how light Bella was. She gently held her against her chest, one hand comforting her head into Stevie's shoulder.

"Did you have an accident, sweetie?" she whispered as she carried Bella down the hallway, patting her back.
The girl nodded and buried her head further into Stevie's shoulder.

"Shhh, don't worry, we'll get you all cleaned up, okay?" she stroked Bella's head as she cried.

Stevie wasn't surprised that Bella wasn't toilet trained. She did wonder if her upset was more than embarrassment. Bella seemed to be scared of most normal bodily functions, as described by Rebecca. Eating, sleeping and relieving herself. She turned away to claw a tear of her own.