It was late at night. 1:36 AM to be exact. The team had had a long day and went to bed...except one.
Melinda was never one for sleep. She constantly had nightmares which only made her frightened in the moment. Usually she practiced Tai-Chi or went to the gym, but this time she decided to indulge in an old talent/hobby of hers. Baking.
She hummed to herself quietly, afraid of waking others, as she made brownies. She had her earbuds in and listened to her song playlist, frequently mouthing a few words and sometimes singing along. She sat down scrolling through her phone when she heard the beeper go off. She quickly sprinted to turn it off and opened the oven only to be greeted by the sweet chocolatey aroma that rushed out. She grabbed the oven mitts and pulled out the tray. She quietly placed it on top of the stove and closed the oven door. May then grabbed a knife and cut a small piece out.
"Sweet. Didn't know you baked," Daisy said from behind the counter.
She only nodded in response before offering her a piece.
"Do you want a brownie?" she asked, expecting a negative answer.
"Yeah sure. Thanks Mama May," she said with a grin.
She let out a small chuckle and handed her a plate.
"Woahwoahwoah, did I just make May laugh?" she questioned in awe. "The Melinda May!?"
"It was a chuckle. And don't flatter yourself if you tell anyone they wouldn't believe you," she said before taking a bite into her brownie.
Daisy grinned childishly as she took a bite of her brownie.
"Wow these are really good. Thanks Mama May," she emphasized again.
"You're welcome," she said ignoring her last comment.
The silence lingered on for a few seconds before Daisy breaking it.
"Why are you up here at 2 in the morning?" she questioned.
May hesitated before answering her question. "Nightmares," she said quietly.
She realized her hesitation and hesitated too before responding. "I get them too. That's why I came up here." Daisy whispered. "Do you wanna know what it was about?" she asked with a slight crack in her voice.
May didn't say anything, she only gave her a look that said 'you don't have too.'
"It's alright, I'm fine with talking about them," she said with a fake smile. She took a deep breath in before saying something. "Today I had one about my family leaving me," she managed to stutter out.
"I thought you said you were in foster care?" she asked quietly.
"I was." Daisy was quiet before speaking again.
"I was talking about you guys," she said softly, slightly lower than a whisper.
It was so quiet no one should've heard it, but May did. She stayed silent before deciding to sit next to her, she put a hand on Daisy's shoulder and looked over at her.
"You're never gonna lose us. And if you do lose them... you'll never lose me," May said after a bit. Daisy burst out in tears and turned to hug May. She hesitated a first, surprised at her sudden actions but then relaxed and hugged her tightly as she sobbed into her shirt. When she finally released her, the young girls eyes were red and puffy and there were tear stains across her cheeks. May wiped a tear off her face before speaking.
"Now go to bed. I'll check up on you every few hours," she said. "Oh and don't tell anyone about this. They need to fear me," she said with a half smile.
"You know you smiled, right," she said giggling.
"Shut up," May said before hugging her tightly again. "Go to bed. Now." she emphasized jokingly.
"Yes mom," Daisy playfully saluted and walked off smiling.
May didn't know what she felt inside, but she felt a generally warm and happy feeling around everyone. She would obviously deny it if anyone ever tried to accuse her of it, but it was true.
"I love these kids," she thought to herself.
