Married to a firefly • Completed

(2) Nobody's judging

Poppy

A heavy knocking on the door made me wake up. I snapped one eye open and took in my surroundings. When I realized I was still in my apartment above the garage my eyes filled up with tears again.

My dad had finished it up in a heartbeat when they found out Mom was expecting again. Never in my life had I thought I'd become a big sister after entering high school, but there we were becoming a family of four on my first day of summer break.

As Rose was born, I had a place to call my own. A place where I could escape her soft crying all through the night. Mom always said it was important for me to rest properly so I could focus on my classes this last year of high school.

Thinking about my loving family I felt that now familiar sting in the back of my throat.

"Poppy, open the door", a female voice called. I knew that voice by heart.
Apparently it was my best friend Abbi, who stood outside my door.

"Hold on." I cleared my throat. I jumped out of the bed, and didn't even bother to put on some clothes or fixing my hair. As I hadn't felt like getting up for almost the whole week since I came home from the hospital, it wouldn't have made a difference anyway.

"Hurry up, Poppy. We need to-"
I shut her down by janking the door open.

"Oh my...Poppy, look at you." She moved forward and pulled me into an embrace. "I shouldn't have let you stay here alone."

"I'm fine, Abbi." I stepped back.

"You are most certainly not. But nobody's judging. I just thought you might need some help getting ready."

"Getting ready?", I asked warily. I didn't want to hurt her feelings but I sure as hell wasn't going anywhere today.

She looked at me in confusion. "Today..." She broke eye contact and cleared her throat. "We are saying our goodbyes today. Remember?"

Goodbyes? Than it dawned on me. "The funeral?" I asked quietly.
She nodded and grabbed my hand. After giving it a quick squeeze she pushed me to the bathroom in the back of the apartment.

"Go take a shower. I brought some clothes for you, since...you know..."

I forced a smile and whispered a thank you. If it wasn't for her, I would have missed my parents funeral and even if I didn't I probably wouldn't have thought as far ahead as to buy some appropriate clothes. Whatever was considered appropriate for burying your whole family. Except.

My eyes widened. It wasn't my whole family. I still had little Rosie. While taking my clothes off, I wondered who was taking care of her.

I secured a plastic bag over the bandage I had wrapped around my left arm and stepped into the shower. After washing my hair and scrubbing my skin until it burned I turned off the water. How could I have not thought about Rose?

"Abbi?"

She came into the bathroom and offered me a huge towel. "What is it?"

I took the towel and wrapped it around me. I had no idea how I should ask her. It probably didn't leave a very good impression, that I hadn't even had enough energy to figure out where Rosie was staying. I was officially the worst sister in the world.

But as Abbi ushered me to sit at the small table in the kitchenette, I promised myself that I would do everything in my power to get my act together and provide Rosie with everything she'd ever want and need. A loving home, just as my patents'.

"So, do you happen to know where Rosie has been staying?"

She grabbed a comb and pulled it slowly through my hair, working out all the knots.

"You will hate to hear this" she sighed, "but she stayed with the Lawson's."

My eyes widened in horror. Say what? "The Lawson's? As in Levi Lawson and his family?"

Abbi sighed. "Yes. Levi Lawson and his family. They are her guardians for now. They picked her up, when she was released from the hospital. She's been staying with them ever since."

Holy crap. This was bad. I hated Levi since we were growing up. I never understood how our parents came to be friends and how Mom even thought of picking them as Rosie's godparents.

I had to talk to them and figure out a way to get her back. She belonged with me. Nobody else.

"Show me your arm." Abbis voice brought me back to reality. "It seems like you missed your last doctors appointment. There's not much we can do about it now, but I can try to fix the outer layer at least."