The Dead Of Night

Ghost of a Smile

When I first met Janson O'Donnell I was five years old, and I hated my parents. My parents have argued for as long as I can remember. My mother liked to drink and my father didn't want anyone to know it; he didn't want anyone to know his life wasn't perfect. This argument was the worst though, and it is the one I won't forget. My father got a promotion and in an excited rush he bought the house he'd always dreamed of - only he forgot to tell my mother. It was two towns over and closer to his office. Not only that it was larger than our bungalow apartment and it had a pool. My mother didn't want to leave, and I didn't want to go either. They argued for a week but there was nothing mother could do, he'd already put the house on the market and so we moved in to our new house anyways.

I remember when we first got to the house father pulled into the long grassy lane way and stretched his arms wide. "Isn't it beautiful?" He'd cried. Neither mother or I got out of the car, neither wanted to accept this. My father walked around to open the car door for me and I stared right at him. "Come on, Mallie. Check out the house with me?"

"No." I said, stubbornly crossing my arms.

His smile tightened and he gave my pigtail a tug. "Don't you wanna see all the rooms?" I shook my head. "I bet Mommy's going to need help bringing her things to her room." I bit my lip and looked up at my mother but she just stared right ahead of her. I looked back at my father and shook my head again. He opened his mouth, and then closed it again. He moved over to the passenger side and opened my mother's door. They whispered at each other furiously but I couldn't make out what they were saying.

I undid the buckle on my booster seat nad hopped out of the car. I started to walk around the door so I could hear better.

"No. Alex, I don't want to!" I ran around the car quicker to see my father yanking at my mother's wrists.

"Get out of that damn car!" He growled, and pulled her out with enough force she fell to her knees in the grass. I stared in horror. When she refused to meet his gaze he slapped her in the face, the force of the blow sending her onto the ground again with a painful thud. "Don't you defy me!" He screamed. A horrible moment passed and no one moved. Father breathed heavily and mother just turned her head to stare at my father with tears in her eyes.

"Alex..." She finally breathed, and he lowered his hand. His shoulders looked more slouched and he looked like he was going to cry.

My father turned back to me and scooped me up into his arms. "You have the prettiest room, Mallorie. It's really big and it has a view of the backyard." I didn't resist, I was too shocked. My father had never hit my mother before. I think that was the beginning of the end, at least of their relationship.

My father carried me up to a room on the second floor. It was a pretty room with green walls and a golden mirror hanging off the wall. My father set me down and I stumbled over to the window which stretched from the floor to the ceiling. I stared down at the clear water of the pool outside.

"Weird." My father said, and I turned to see him standing at the mirror. Catching my gaze he smiled. "Pretty isn't it, hun?" I nodded.

He gave me the saddest smile I'd ever seen and said, "Okay, you wait right here and I'll be back with some of your things."

I looked up at my father. "Bring Mr. Cuddles?" I asked looking up at him. He smiled and said 'of course' and then he was gone. I sat down at the window and looked back to the pool. Dad was up in a few minutes and he had a whole collection of stuffed animals under his arm - and the giant bear, Mr. Cuddles, was there too.

"Here you are." He set them down at my feet. "Mr. Cuddles as ordered." He stood there for a moment, expecting me to say or do something but I just nodded. He looked like he was about to say something more but then he went down the stairs. I grabbed Mr. Cuddles from the pile, pulled him onto my lap and with my face buried into his fur I watched my mother wander out to the pool.