Mommy Mouse (sequel to City Mouse)

Chapter 32: Waking Up

Leo looked around the dim apartment, eyes wide with curiosity. It was huge, first off. It must take up the whole top of the building, it was so big. The ceilings were really high, and there were windows all over the place, that showed night time New York City.

Brina took his hand and led him to what must be her and Lottie's bedroom. Lottie held her finger up to her lips when a large doggy came to greet them, sniffing Leo at great length. Leo waited until she was finished sniffing, then they continued, into a large walk-in closet that had a door on the other side, Jack-and-Jill style.

"We share this closet with Clio and Francie, but you don't have to worry, they can't hear in here if their door is closed," Brina told him. She patted his hand before letting it go, and sat down against the wall, surrounded by clothes and stuffed animals. This closet obviously doubled as a play area. It was perfect, cozy and hidden, with the air of secrecy and magic that all play places had to have.

Lottie, who had disappeared, entered the closet holding juice boxes, cheese sticks, and a box of crackers. The large doggy followed her, and she shut the door and joined Leo and her sister on the floor.

"I brought supplies," she told them, putting everything in the middle in a pile.

She turned to Leo, asking, "How long do you want to stay?" Brina, too, turned interested eyes to Leo.

He thought about it, and shrugged. "I don't know. My parents really needed a break, and some bad things happened today, so I thought I should go."

"What bad things?"

Leo looked around the closet. Even in the dim light, he could see that it was a colorful riot of girls' clothing, along with stuffed animals, and there was even a bookshelf sitting on top of the shoe cubby. These guys obviously had a really nice life.

"I pushed someone down at school," he admitted. "And I pushed too hard on accident because of this." He lifted his cast. "I wanted to push him, because he was being really mean to me, but I didn't want for him to hit his head like he did. I didn't mean for that to happen, you know?"

The girls were looking at him, eyes wide with sympathy. They both nodded their curly heads.

"It's okay, Leo," Brina said, scrunching her face up. "You're nice, no one will think you did it on purpose."

"But they do!" Leo responded, his voice louder than he'd intended. "Dominick had to get his head scanned, and we have to pay for it! I was bad, I was really bad."

He looked down at the juice box he was holding. He didn't want to cry in front of them.

"I'm a bad boy," he repeated. "And I don't belong to anyone, so I think I'm going to have to just live here." He looked around the closet. "There's room for me, right? I can stay?"

The girls nodded again. "Sure," Lottie replied. "We can bring you food, and books to read and stuff."

Leo yawned. He was sleepy, which was so weird, because he was in a new place, and usually that made it hard for him to sleep.

"But you belong to your mommy and daddy, and they might want you back," Brina said.

Leo took a deep breath.

"I don't, though," he began. "My mommy's not my real mommy, she just married us last summer. My real mommy died when she was trying to have my sister borned."

Brina and Lottie stared at him. How could a mommy die?

"Your real mommy died?" Brina repeated. "That's so sad, Leo. Lottie's first mommy, the one who carried her around in her uterus, died, too, all the way over in Haiti. Then we adopted her, and she came here to live with us." She thought for a moment. "Did your new mommy adopt you? So you're hers now?"