Once Abandoned, Now Found

Chapter 9

The rest of that evening passed quickly, the warm bath subdued Alex (much to Maggie's relief), the hot chocolate swiftly sending her to sleep. Maggie and Danni were planning on staying up and attempting to figure things out, but as soon as they saw Alex asleep on the guest bed, all they wanted to do was sleep too.

There was no storm that night, but Alex still woke up crying, a nightmare plaguing her sleep again.

"Worthless brat"

"Stupid girl"

"Why can't you be good like your sister?"

"Stop crying, no-one cares"

"Will you just shut up"

Every word hit Alex in time with the belt, and every time Alex was unable to stifle her screams. Though the room was dark, Alex could see a pair of eyes glowing at her, red like fire, as the leather belt was brought up, and cracked down on her small body. The hits wouldn't stop, they just kept going and going while a small figure stood by the doorway, and Cheshire-cat grin on their face.

Maggie and Danni were awoken by a piercing scream, followed by the sound of gut-wrenching sobbing. They didn't waste a second, scrambling out of bed and running towards the sound, nearly tripping over their own feet and each other in their hurry. The sight that greeted them broke their hearts. Alex was sat upright in the middle of the bed, sweating, gasping for air, and tears running down her face.

"Oh my little girl!"

The couple rushed towards Alex, scooping her up and holding her in between them so she could hear both heartbeats. They didn't say anything, wanting to get Alex's breathing under control before trying to start a conversation. It took unnervingly long before Alex stopped scream-crying and started sniffling, her breathing still erratic but slower, she was finally calming down.

Danni moved away from the hug so she could get a better look at the frightened little, noting the shaking and the small blue eyes that followed her every movement. The bulge of the diaper was excessive, clearly Alex had wet herself in fear, but there were no obvious physical injuries, which Danni was thankful for.

Maggie began speaking softly into Alex's ear, murmuring praise and sweet words to help continue the calmness.

"You're safe baby, I promise you're safe" she whispered, rocking Alex carefully.

"No hurt" Alex whispered back, her voice barely audible as she clung to the woman, not willing to let go of the comfort.

"No hurt" Danni confirmed, stroking Alex's head gently and rubbing her lower back.

"Bath and bed" Danni mouthed to Maggie, who agreed and walked to their bedroom, moving into the ensuite bathroom.

Danni took a moment to grab Teggs, a warm towel, baby powder and a new diaper, wanting to make sure that Alex was kept as warm, safe, and secure as possible.

When she arrived in the bathroom, Maggie had already begun to run the bath, keeping one hand near the tap to check the temperature while the other stayed protectively around Alex.

Once the bath was filled, Alex was undressed and placed in the tub, the women noticing the immediate relaxation as the little finally let go of her stress.

"That's better huh bubs" Danni cooed, kneeling next to her girlfriend and beginning to wash Alex.

Alex nodded slowly, making grabby hands at the women. Danni and Maggie shaking their heads and telling her "no" was not what she wanted to hear, and once the bottom lip started to tremble there was no stopping the waterworks.

"Hush baby, you can have cuddles in a minute" Maggie attempted to pacify the crying little, but "in a minute" wasn't good enough for Alex, why didn't they understand that she needed them now?

"P'ease" Alex cried out, choking on her sobs, "p'ease, I be good!"

"Fuck it" Danni said, quickly stripping off her pyjamas and getting in the bath behind Alex.

That seemed to do the trick, Alex instantly turned around, latched on to the woman and koala-hugged her. The cries subsided and Maggie used the quiet time to take a deep breath, and prepare everything for when Alex and Danni got out of the bath.

"That's better isn't it baby? Now you've got your cuddles" Danni cooed, cupping water in her hands and letting it run down Alex's back.

Alex nodded, pushing her face into Danni's neck and sighing, the woman's heart beat was slowly lulling her to sleep, and the warm water and cuddles made her feel safe.

Somehow another round of tears was avoided when it was time to leave the bath, though this may have been because Alex refused to let Danni go and so she was carried out. Once Alex was pried off Danni she was swaddled in a fluffy towel, Maggie making sure that it was tight around the half-asleep girl.

"The bad dreams make you tired don't they, I think we should all go back to sleep" Maggie suggested, rocking the baby and moving back into the bedroom.

Alex was too tired to voice her upset when she was de-swaddled, her eyes refusing to open as the diaper was taped up and a onesie put on her. It was only a few seconds later that she was in bed between Maggie and Danni, Teggs firmly tucked under her arm, and all three were asleep again.

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The next time Danni woke she was alone in bed, and her phone read 10.34 am. Groaning, she rolled out of bed, sleepily making her way downstairs to the kitchen, where she found Maggie and Alex having a dance party.

"You had a dance party without me!" Danni pouted, spooking Maggie and making Alex giggle.

"Dance" Alex grinned, wiggling around and flapping her arms.

Maggie stopped dancing in order to kiss her girlfriend, desperately wanting to make it more passionate than they could considering Alex was with them

"Well good morning to you" Danni smirked, leaning in to kiss Maggie again.

Before she could, she felt a tug on her trousers and turned to see Alex glaring at her. Danni wanted to laugh, she really did, Alex was trying to look intimidating while in a duck onesie with a diaper bulge, but somehow she kept her cool.

"What is it baby?" Danni asked amusedly, bending down so she was eye-to-eye with the grumpy little.

"Dance!" Alex demanded, continuing to tug on Danni's trousers.

"But what if...the tickle monster appears!"

Danni quickly grabbed Alex's sides, tickling her mercilessly while Maggie watched on.

"'Top, 'top" Alex cried, desperately trying to get away from the tickle monster. The giggle were infectious, and soon Danni found herself at the mercy of two tickle monsters in revenge.

"Alright alright, truce" Danni put her hands up in surrender, trying to catch her breath while Maggie and Alex high-fived, looking smug.

"We win!" Alex was quick to celebrate, performing what only she could call a dance.

Maggie and Danni began making breakfast, mentally creating a list of things Alex needed, the first being a highchair as Alex was still keen to prove that she could fall off the chair despite the bungee chords.

A/N: Evening all, here's chapter nine and chapter ten will be posted in less than 30 minutes. Thank you so much for all the love and support, it makes me so happy to know that people like my book.

Feel free to ask me any questions you like, I promise to answer all that I can.

Have a great week!