Maybe baby/Ain't That Cute
By:
Ella ( [email protected] )
Chapter
Four: "Letters of explanation"
“Okay, when you’ve quite finished messing about, d’you think you and Nick
could get all that…pink…stuff and bring it in?” Brian looked at the sky.
“…Because it looks like it might rain. Or snow. Or both, possibly.”
AJ and Nick nodded and gathered up all the stuff. Brian just stood there with
the little girl in his arms, watching. He thought for a moment and said:
“Okay, this is going to sound like a stupid question, but, like, neither of
you have got a secret kid or anything and not told anyone…have you?”
AJ laughed loudly. “Well, don’t look at me! I wouldn’t be that
stupid!”
Brian nodded. “What about you Nick?”
Nick shuffled on the spot. “Um…I don’t think so.”
“What do you mean you don’t think so? Either you do or you don’t!
It’s a simple enough question buddy.”
Staring straight ahead, Nick replied: “No I don’t have a kid.”
AJ and Brian looked at one another, eyebrows raised. “So why do you look
so…so…so…”
“-Guilty,” AJ cut in, across Brian.
Nick jerked his head up.
“I don’t look guilty! I’m tired and I wanna go to bed but seeing as
though there appears to be a baby in the garden I don’t think that will be
happening so just stop going on at me because I just can’t handle all this
shit okay? Do you get my point?”
Brian and AJ exchanged glances. “Okay, whatever, just chill out dude,” AJ
said. “It was just a damn question.”
“Yeah, a question which I’d already given you the answer to. And, while
we’re talking about it – what about you Brian – do you happen to
have any secret children that we don’t know about?” Nick grinned.
“Children my ass!” Brian replied, as the pink bundle began to cry again.
“Right, let’s just go indoors, call the cops and get this all sorted out so
we can all get some sleep.”
So, the three of them made their way across the lawn, beneath the thunder clouds
which were becoming blacker by the minute. That, and the pink thing’s
continual sobs, was enough to put anyone into a negative mood.
Making his way through the front door, Brian looked down at the little baby girl
in his arms. She was diddy alright…really tiny, with a set of beautiful blue
eyes, all watery and red from crying so much. She stared back at Brian, her lip
still trembling with each fresh set of tears that weaved down her tiny face,
mumbling baby-talk that only one word could be deciphered – “mom.”
“Don’t’cha know it’s rude to stare?” AJ bellowed in Brian’s
ear, making both him and the pink bundle jump in front. The baby began sobbing
again and looking at AJ as though he had just committed murder. AJ backed away
as Brian gave him an impatient look.
“Yo thanks AJ, just make it worse why don’t you?” Brian sat down in a
chair, and Nick and AJ sat opposite him, watching as he tried to comfort the
baby.
“Jeez sorry!”
“Look just shut up alright, you’re scaring her.”
AJ put his hands up in defeat as he received one final evil from Brian, who then
turned his attention to the baby.
“Okay…well, she looks about one, maybe two. Who knows. I’ll just take her
hat off, she must be hot in all that stuff.”
Gently Brian removed her hat and a tuft of blonde hair could be seen on her head
– sticking up in all different directions. Brian laughed, thinking how much it
resembled Nick’s hair on a bad day, or when he woke up in the mornings.
The little girl stopped crying and put her hands on her hair, looking around the
room and staring for a long while at AJ.
“She’s making me nervous, Brian” AJ whined, “make her stop.”
“How can I make her stop?” he laughed. “Maybe she’s just hungry and
wants to eat your hair – it looks like friggin’ custard anyway!”
AJ put his hand defensively to his newly dyed acid yellow mop. At least it
wasn’t boring.
A slight scratching noise at the back door, made AJ start. It was Brian’s cat
Tess wanting to come in.
“Uh stupid cat,” he mumbled, getting up from the chair. “Actually though…maybe
she’d like your cat, Bri. All babies like animals, right?”
Brian looked horrified. “You can’t let her eat my cat!”
“You dick!” AJ laughed, “At least she could just have a look at it, you
know?!”
Brian blushed. “Oh yeah, whatever. Let her in then.”
Tess was a really big cat; tabby with a bushy tail and huge paws. She
came purring into the room, AJ close behind.
“Tee-essss,” Brian called in a cat-type voice, “come here baby.”
The cat wandered over to Brian but, seeing the pink thing, scurried over to the
window sill where she sat as far away from Brian as possible.
“Caaaaaaaaaaaaaaaat!”
All three guys looked at the pink bundle.
“Oh my God, did she just speak?”
“Sounds like it.”
“Say it again," said AJ, pointing to the cat.
The little girl said nothing – instead, just burst into tears.
“Oh jeez what did I do?” AJ whined as the cries grew louder. “Damn this
isn’t helping. We need to find out what exactly she’s doing here.” He
paused. “Okay Nick, see if you can find out any info about her in that bag
down there – anything at all. I’ll see if I can get hold of the police, or
someone.”
Nick nodded and made his way over to the pink bag. Rummaging slowly through it,
he pulled out an envelope, looked at the front and turned white. Holy shit.
“Errr earth to Nick, earth to Nick…what is that?”
Nick swivelled around to look at Brian.
“It’s an envelope”, he answered shakily, “and it’s got my name on
it.”