Night Security

Unexpected Family

(About a year after the night program started)

"Hey, Larry. It's me. I need you to cover me for a bit. I'll be a little late today. I've had something come up," I say into the phone, looking out of my window.

"Sure, no problem. How late do you think you'll be?" he asks.

"About an hour, hour and a half," I explain.

"Okay, I'll relay the message to McPhee," he says.

"Thank you so much. This'll make sense in a bit. I'm sorry," We say our goodbye and hang up. I turn around to see the people in my living room. "So... Distant Aunt and apparently little cousin..." I point to the two. "Where were we?" I sit down with furrowed brows. I sip on my coffee, even though I know that no amount of caffeine can solve this problem.

"Well, as I've told you, her father is a dirt bag. He just kicked us out. It'll only be for a few nights, I promise," Aunt Becca says. I squint my eyes and sigh.

"There's a guest room down the hall and on the right. I do have a few rules though. I work nights, so unless it's a dire emergency, I need to sleep during the day. I will be coming in around 6 AM, leaving about 6 PM. It's a 12 hour shift, so I need as much sleep as possible." I then direct my attention to the little girl. "Anything that looks expensive or old, do not touch. I have a box of old toys I'll pull out of the basement, but don't touch anything else. You are welcome to read any of the books in the study, as long as you do not tear the pages, write in, or lose. All books must go in their place when you're done. You are welcome to use the living room tv, game systems, and computer, but my room and all devices in it are off limits. There are crayons and paper in the hall closet, along with board games. All pieces to the game you are playing must be put back into the box before opening another. And finally, wash your hands before and after every meal. I do not want food grease or crumbs in my house. That's all. Now, I have work in 2 hours. I need to get ready," I say, turning in the direction of my bedroom. I begin to get ready for the day.

One ready for work, I walk of my room with a piece of paper. "This is my personal and work numbers. Call me if you need anything," I clip it to the refrigerator. I'll have a print out of the rules ready by tomorrow," I grab my keys and walk out. I begin my short walk to work. When I walk through the doors, I am happy that there's no night event tonight. I look around at all of my friends. This instantly brings up my mood.

"Hey, Kamilah," Larry says, jogging over to me. "So what was it that made you late?" he asks as we walk for me to clock in.

"My aunt and cousin randomly showed up. Needed a place to stay. I was just on my out of the door when it happened," I sigh and push open the door.

"Ah, man," he leans against the door frame.

"Yeah. Something about her deadbeat boyfriend kicking them out. It's weird. I hadn't seen her since I was little. I didn't even know she had a kid," I scoff and grab my flashlight. "I mean, what was I supposed to do? Tell them to get lost? I may not be close to them, but their family," I shake my way and walk past him.

"Yeah, it's hard to be mean to family," he agrees.

"Speaking of family, how's Nick doing? I haven't seen him in a while," I note.

"He's uh... He's good. He's flunking history," he says.

"No," I scoff.

"Yeah, and math. He's at that age. I think he's distracted," he comments.

"Well, I could give him a extra hand if you want. I did graduate at 14," I look at him.

"If it wouldn't be any trouble," He states more than asks.

"No trouble at all. Gotta have something to do on my off days, now that I have them," I shrug. "Plus, I can see about that program I told you about last year. I can see if he'd want to do it?" I suggest.

"Sure. That'd be great," he nods.

"Okay, great," I smile at him.

"It has been a week since my Aunt and cousin moved in with me. Things have been going good, for the most part. I don't have a clue what 7th graders like. I can barely make conversation. By the time I was her age, I was looking into college, studying at a high school level. I just don't know," I say to Ahk. He listens, not saying anything. "You're a good listener," I smile.

"Just talk to her," he says, keeping his eyes on me. I sigh. The soccer ball gets kicked to me, so I kick it back.

"How?" I ask.

"Sit down and talk. It's not hard. We do it everyday," He smiles at me.

"Yeah, but it's different with you," I argue.

"How?"

"I don't know. It just is," I shrug.

Around 4 AM, I get a phone call. "Hello," I answer.

"Uhm, Kamilah?"

"Yes, Cam?" I ask.

"My mom left to go grocery shopping and she hasn't been back. I'm worried," She says through the phone.

"What time did she leave? It's 4 in the morning," I shake my head. Larry looks over at me.

"Around 7?" She asks.

"Alright. Have you tried calling her?" I furrow my brows.

"Like a billion times. It keeps saying the number is no longer in service," She explains.

"Okay. Well, did she say what store she was going to?" I ask.

"No. She unloaded all of my things from the car. When I asked about her stuff, she said she'd get it when she got back from the store," She explains.

"Okay, well, just stay there. I'll be home in a few hours," I close my eyes and pinch the bridge of my nose.

"Alright," We say our goodbyes and hang up.

"What was that about?" Larry asks.

"I think my aunt just abandoned her daughter at my house," I say to him. I dial my aunts number.

"The number you have dialed has been disconnected and is no longer in service. Goodbye," the voice in the phone says.

"Yep, that is exactly what just happened," I slam my phone down. I look over to my friends who are playing an odd form of Pictionary. "I'm only 24! How the hell am I supposed to raise a 12 year old?!" Ahkmenrah hears me raise my voice and looks back. I avoid looking at him. "I mean, come on. She's half my age," I shake my head.