The nurses had been in and out of her room all night. She wondered where they were now that she needed them. She looked up at the clock and hoped that her lunch tray would interrupt whatever it was that was happening between them. Matilda stopped snorting and was now sleeping so peacefully she didn’t look real. Leah was staring at her, waiting for a response. The gentle quiet that usually caressed them now felt oppressive and uncomfortable. Therese swallowed and then coughed, choking on the words sitting in her throat. Finally, she spoke. “It will be okay. She will warm up to the idea in her own time.”

Leah inched forward again, appearing as though she wanted to speak, but then sat back and said nothing. The baby stirred and they both turned toward the bassinette, but Matilda quickly settled. It was just the two of them again. This time when Leah came close, she whispered so softly Therese could barely hear. “Be careful.”

And then she was gone.

Therese reached over to the bed rail and pushed the help button. A few minutes later, a pretty blonde nurse appeared. “Do you need something, Miss Wolley?”

“Yes. A friend brought these for me, but I don’t want them. Why don’t you take them out front to share with the rest of the girls?”

“Are you sure?” the nurse asked, holding the nearly full bag of Hershey’s kisses in her hand.

“Yes, I’m sure. Take them away.” She rolled over and pulled the blanket over her head. The pit in her stomach made it hard to breathe. She wedged her head into the pillow and wept, the sound of her sobs muffled by the bedding, her tears buried under the thin layer of feathers.

Franny

Grapes were our favorite.

It was Tuesday afternoon and Leah dropped us off at the town library so we could do our homework together. Evelyn and I always sat in the adult section under the supervision of the librarian we liked, Miss Betty, who smiled politely when we walked in and then ignored us the rest of the time.

Evelyn and I plucked the grapes from their stems and tossed them into little plastic bags, which we hid in our backpacks. When the librarian wasn’t looking, we popped them into our mouths. I liked the way they filled my hand and how the flesh of my palm protected them, like little eggs. When Miss Betty was working we could comfortably go through two bags of grapes each. Evelyn stuffed so many into her mouth, she looked like she had the mumps. She tried to speak, but her words came out half complete until, finally, she swallowed. “Think I beat my record.”

I nodded, impressed.

“I think we should start investigating. You know, try to uncover your mother’s secret.”