Being Grassi-Hoying

Chapter 41

**Mitch's POV**

I wake up in the middle of the night, and I have a bad feeling. Something happened. It seems to cry out. I check the time and it's 4:27 in the morning. Probably just something I was dreaming about. I think to myself after listening to nothing but the air conditioner and the movie in Karlie's room. I eventually get up and go into Karlie's room, turning off Lilo and Stitch, I check on her, sleeping peacefully. That counselor really seems to be helping. I think to myself, moving some of her hair, ever since Scott and I agreed that she needed help sorting out everything, and we got her into counseling, her night terrors have gone away. I kiss her head and make my way back to bed, still hating the cold feeling when I pull the covers over me. By the time I get comfortable my phone buzzes on the nightstand, and it's Scott. Something happened. the feeling cries out again. I quickly answer, and the crying tells me everything. "Babe..." I whisper calmingly, but just letting him cry for a while. "For new things to happen, the old things must go." He chokes out, "What?" I ask, "Kip's the new thing that's come into your life, so the good Lord has decided it's my time to go." He continues, "That doesn't mean much, but-chya better get someone real nice to take the farm Scottie." He pauses a second to recover his voice. "I know you can't, that's not what's planned for ya, now that singin' of that group's what is, and little Kip. She better be raised right, your momma didn't raise no idiot. I'm sorry Scottie." He breaks again. "I'm sorry I hated ya, I'm sorry I laid hands on Mitchell. That wasn't right of me. This old soul had to get a lil fire ignited to get that the world's changing." He stops and I break in, "He's right baby. Karlie's the best thing that's happened to us, and I hate that she won't get to grow up knowing Tommy. But he always told us to suck it up and move on. Now it's not going to be that easy, but it'll be okay." "I'll say hello to Kip's momma for y'all. And we'll watch over y'all three together." His accent returns and it makes it clearer to me, and I break down myself. "Daddy...?" I hear a small voice at the door, "Come on baby." She walks in and climbs into my lap. "Did somethin' happen?" She asks. "Yeah honey." I hold her close to me. "Is that Karlie?" I hear Scott ask, "Yeah." I laugh through the tears, "It is." "I want to talk to her." I'm shocked by his statement, "Are you sure?" I ask, "Is that Papa?" She looks up at me, wiping my face, "Why are you crying? What happened?" I laugh at all of Karlie's questions, "Here, talk to Papa." I smile, putting Scott on speaker phone. "Papa?" She speaks quietly when Scott hiccups. "Hey honey. I'm sorry I had to leave randomly." Karlie reaches for my phone, which I set in her hands and watch as she carefully cradles it in her arms, "It's okay, when are you coming home?" She asks, "I'm not to sure honey, but I will see you soon, right Daddy?" I grin and nod to Karlie, "Yep, as soon as school's over." She smiles back, "That's in like, three days!" She cheers, making Scott laugh. "Yep." "Papa?" She asks Scott, snuggling closer to me, "What happened?" "Well, you remember Tommy?" "Yeah, the one who was here to help you and Grandpa with my tree house. He stayed in a hotel with Grandpa although you offered for them to stay here, he likes to call me Kip." I look at her, lost. "My, you have a great memory Kar." Scott's voice comes out sounding just as confused as me. "What?" She scrunches her eyebrows together, "It's just weird for you to remember things that well at six years old." "Oh, I remember lots of things! Like we moved into this house exactly two weeks ago, I started my new school on May 1st, I started counseling on April 19th. We talk about how different my life is from when I was three years old, back when I lived in the girl's home with Marli, it was owned by Ms.Carter (I think that's right...) and my owner, he showed up there too. He liked it there because there were more girls to play games with, besides me. Marli and I hid a lot, she didn't like the games and neither did I, so he ended up making us go to work instead, we had to show men to where they were going and they would always touch us, Marli more than me. She would spend nights outside crying a lot. Then one night Boss became really angry and went to hit me, but Marli jumped in front of me. She went to school and a teacher called people who showed up at the home, and took them away. Then Jessie came, and then I got my parents, Daddy and Papa. I knew the second I was introduced to them and their friends I belonged with them. I was scared at first, I thought Papa was gonna hurt me like Boss did, but you don't and Marli was adopted by Aunt Esther, and now we're one big happy family.  I mean, we were kidnapped because Boss wanted me and Marli back so he could hurt us and Esther got really hurt, but now we're good. Right?" I cover my mouth to try and recover from that back story. "Well, uh, back on topic?" Scott is still lost, but moves on, "Yes that Tommy baby. He had to leave and be with your mommy, do you get that?" He holds back a hiccup as she answers, "Yeah, he went to Heaven. That place Kevin talks about a lot. He said that's where my mommy is and one day I can go there." "Yeah, alright, back to bed with you pumpkin." I kiss her head as she hugs me, "I love you Daddy." She wipes my face again, "Please stop crying." She kisses my cheek, "I love you too, squirt." I reply. "I love you Papa, and I miss you a lot." She says into the phone. "I love you too Karlie-Barlie." She giggles at Scott's nickname for her. "Karlie-Barlie so cute it's scary." They say the little, thing, they came up with and she giggles again. "Goodnight my love." I say as she walks out of the room. "What in the hell?" Scott mumbles as I stare at the doorway, "What, how? How can she remember all that?" "I don't know." "We'll look into it when you're home." I end the conversation about her, "I'm still worried about you, are you okay?" "Yeah, I'll be okay baby. How about you?" I smile as he asks me, "Yeah, I think I'll be okay." And I stay on the phone with him until I fall asleep.