More than anything, I wanted to believe, but then I thought about my grandmother’s car parked in front of Leah’s house and I remembered the look on Mrs. Skoll’s face when she led me to her office. I tucked my chin down and she brought my head close to her chest. I heard the pounding of her heart and I wondered if it was the little girl that bad things happened to trying to get out. She kissed the top of my head and wrapped me more closely into her. I felt warm and, as the smell of wet grass seeped into my nose, I wanted to believe what she was saying because I could not imagine losing her.

We separated for a minute and she stared at my face. “You belong with me.”

She licked her finger and used it to wipe a line of drool that had drizzled out during sleep and then helped me stand up. The moment we walked through the front door of the house, the telephone rang and Leah ran off to answer. She was in the kitchen speaking in hushed tones so I couldn’t hear what she was saying.

The television was on with the volume turned down and my grandmother was lying on the couch. I watched the people on the screen move in silence and then I sat on the floor beneath her, leaning back, the vibration of her snores skimming the top of my head. We sat that way for a few minutes and then the pattern of her breathing changed and I knew she was awake. She reached out, touched my shoulders, and then pulled me close to her.

“The first time I saw you, I knew you were special.”

I cringed, but my grandmother didn’t seem to notice. “Is that why she left?”

Her face shifted for a second before she spoke. “Your mother left you here with Leah because she thought that was best.”

Leah walked back into the room. Her face looked gray, like a storm cloud had rubbed itself across her cheeks.

“Anything important?” my grandmother asked.

Leah just shook her head. “No, nothing important. Are you hungry? Why don’t I go make some breakfast.”

I found a pillow and hugged it close to me, rocking back and forth as Leah quickly left the room.

“Do you think a lot about being left?” my grandmother asked.

I shrugged, folding myself more tightly into the pillow.

She clasped her arms around me, squeezing so hard that it hurt. She was quiet then and sunk her face into my hair. We rocked together. “Would you like to come home with me?”

I didn’t want to always be the one that everyone worried about. I was tired of causing trouble for all the people around me. I shook my head.

“I will always love you, Franny.”