Raising Laila

Chapter 9 - Flood

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sometimes she hides herself away just to see if she is worth looking for

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December 9, 2017: 6.32pm. 

If Laila's behaviour had been difficult before she started school, now it was bordering on horrific.  Since she had gone back about twelve days ago, she had broken plates, mugs and almost a window. Karl and Shireen were pretty much pulling their hair out, stress levels they had never reached before. The whole house tiptoed around Laila flinching if they dropped anything or spoke to loudly, that it would set her off. 

Jade was coming home from Christmas in just over a weeks time, and they were going to discuss future plans then, Karl and Shireen couldn't and didn't want to make decisions alone. But they did want the best for Laila, which the current situation wasn't. 

"Laila, stop the attitude please," Karl said, as Laila sassily decided she wasn't going in the bath as she had been doing for the last half an hour. 

"No, I'm not having a bath," she said rolling her eyes and standing with her hands on her hips. 

"Yes, you are. You need a bath. And don't talk to me like that, you're six not sixteen. Stop rolling your eyes and take your hands off your hips," he warns. Karl was fed up of having the fight and truthfully so was Laila but nobody was understanding that she didn't want anybody except her Mummy to help her in the bath. 

"Uh- No, I've told you I'm not having a bath!" she said again. 

"Laila, I'm not arguing with you. Either go upstairs to the bathroom where Shireen is waiting to help you, or go and sit quietly in your room until you'll get in the bath," Karl said sternly towering over the six year old. 

"I'm not doing what you say, you can't tell me what to do," 

"Yes I can, I'm the adult. You are the child, you need to learn to listen to me, young lady. Or all that is going to happen, is you are going to end up in trouble," Karl said raising his eyebrows, him and Shireen had tried pretty much every discipline method but all had failed, she would get up and wander away from the corner, leave her room if sent there but they weren't quite ready to spank her just yet. 

"Whatever," she said wandering off, Karl hoped she was heading upstairs which the footsteps on the stairs proved a few seconds later. 

"Laila, Karl and Amara have both had a bath now so it's your turn. You can have a bath or a shower, if you like?" Shireen tries a couple of minutes later, Laila had gone to sit in her bedroom with some toys, not because Karl had told her too but because she liked being in her room, it was hers and nobody else messed around with her things. 

"I don't want too," 

"You need to sweetheart, you've not had a bath in a couple of days," 

"I'll do it on my own," she said rolling her eyes. Not wanting to cause an argument especially since she was doing (almost) as she had been asked, Shireen ignored it. 

"Alright, I'll stay up here just in case you need any help and you can just shout me, okay," Shireen said as Laila walked directly passed her in to the bathroom and shut the door behind her. 

December 9, 2017: 6.49pm.

"Laila? Are you alright?" Shireen asked knocking on the door. Laila had been in the bathroom for almost fifteen minutes without asking for any help and Shireen was concerned. When Laila didn't reply, Shireen tried the door only for it to be locked. 

"Laila! Are you in the shower? Or is the tap running?!" She called a bit louder, hearing the running water, she had made sure that the bath was full up ready for Laila to running water was a sound she hadn't expected.