Night-Night Farley
A three year old boy quietly made his way into the hallway, banging the teddy bear he held loosely by the arm gently on each step as he went down them. Dressed in pajamas with his hair messy and his eyes only half open it was fairly obvious this boy had only just woken from sleep. As his foot hit the last step it could be seen that his half closed eyes were red and puffed up to go with the tear tracks that ran down his cheeks. Once off the stairs and in the hall way he looked around before taking a step to his left at the same time as calling out for his mum.
"Mummy!", his voice was muffled slightly from crying but it still rang out through the hallway and as he waited he watched the door to what was the living room. After a minute it opened and his mum came out from it, spotting her son straight away and walking over to him. He held his arms out and his mum picked him up.
"What are you doing up Charlie?" she asked, glancing to the clock on the opposite wall that told her it was half eleven and that the boy should most definitely be fast asleep by now.
"Night-Night gone." he answered, burying his head into her shoulder and tears starting up again.
"He can't have gone that far, let's go look for him and then get you back to bed." his mum said softly as she headed up the stairs with him. She took him into his room and sat him down on his bed.
"You had him earlier so he must be here somewhere." she said and Charlie nodded, rubbing his eyes before hugging the bear he carried.
"Night-Night gone." he repeated his earlier phrase quietly to the bear as he watched his mum looking around his room.
"Growler wants Night-Night too." he said louder so his mum could hear. She looked to him, sat on his bed with the bear and smiled slightly.
"Well Farley and Growler can go back to bed now because Night-Night's right here." she said, standing up, going across to Charlie's bed and picking up the comfort blanket from the floor beside it. Charlie reached out for it as his mum gave it to him he brought it up to his face and held it there for a moment, taking in it's scent and the feel of the softness of it against his cheek.
"Come on then Farley, back into bed." his mum said, pulling the quilt up and indicating for Charlie to move underneath it, which he did, taking Night-Night and Growler with him. His mum watched him as he settled down, one arm holding the bear to his chest and the other holding the shawl to his face again. She watched the little boys eyes slowly slide shut and his arms tighten around the things he held before he was asleep.
"Night night Charlie, Growler and Night-Night" she whispered before leaving the room and going back downstairs.