The Sponsor

Olivia

Olivia got up at noon. The clothes that used to hug her hips tightly were now loose on her body. She dragged herself to the kitchen and looked at the left over supper of rice, beans, steamed cabbages and meat. She did not bother heating it up. She fixed herself a plate and went to the sitting room.

There was nobody. The golden chandelier hang sentry on the ceiling as if watching her while the fan made its rounds along with whirring sounds. She took a spoonful of her rice and beans, then another but before she could lift the third spoonful to her mouth the room started spinning and then it went dark.

She was on a hospital bed sweating profusely, there were people around her. The images were hazy. They were in green attire and all she could hear was, "PUSH! PUSH! PUSH!" She finally made one strong push with a loud scream leaving her lungs and out came her baby crying from the hostility of this world. "It's a girl," one of the person in green attire said and Olivia's face twisted in disappointment.

Her husband, Larry wouldn't be impressed. She knew. He expressed his sentiments two weeks later. "What will I do with a girl? I can't kick a ball with her, I can't watch a game with her. Heck she pees while seated. I thought we agreed it was going to be a boy?"

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'll do better next time," she stammered.

She looked at her little girl. She looked every bit like her, it was uncanny.

"What should we name her?"

"Whatever you want," Larry said while banging the door behind him. He had a game to catch. The next thing she heard was his Subaru engine roaring. Sometimes she felt he loved that car more than he loved her.

The kid had a smile on her face as if she didn't know that things were not working. Her smile made her smile but not for long, the door flew open once more.

"Have you forgotten something," Olivia asked while staring at her baby thinking it was her husband Larry. It wasn't, it was her doctor, on his hand a knife.

He moved towards them. Closer and closer and closer until Olivia could smell his scent. Then he lifted the knife and started stabbing the baby. One time, two time, three times, countless times. She let out a scream. She was back in the living room. The plate and its contents on the floor. The chandelier sentry on the ceiling. The fan making its rounds.