"CLARABELLE GET IN HERE RIGHT NOW!" My mother screams from downstairs. Shoot. I don't know what I did, but it must have been terrible, especially since it's only five-thirty. In the morning. On a Saturday. From the tone of her voice, I'm not getting dinner tonight.
I stop my extra credit work and rush down the stairs, where my mom is waiting with her arms crossed and foot tapping.
"Clarabelle Marie Darling, do you know why I called you down here?" She askes impatiently and gives me a stern look.
"Umm...no?" I flinch at the scowl she is wearing.
"Interesting. Let's see if you remember," She taps her chin as if trying to recall something. "What did you do Wednesday?"
"I-uh-I went to school—"
"No. Start from the beginning." She interrupts. I try to remember everything I did that day.
"Okay, well I woke up at five something—"
"You don't even know what time you woke up. Of course," She mumbles under her breath.
"—I got ready, checked on the little ones, ate breakfast, walked to school—"
"Why didn't you take the bus?" Another interruption! Funny answer actually. I was eating breakfast when my mom told me that there were problems with the buses and that she would have to drive the kids to school. Then she proceeded to tell me that she couldn't drive me, even though the elementary starts an hour and a half after the high school.
"You told me that I had to walk because the buses broke down." She looks at me like I'm stupid. Oh, not again. Sometimes she will pretend not to remember something so that she can use her book of punishments.
"The buses didn't break down, now tell me why you walked to school," The smug look on her face confuses me. I know she remembers, so why is she doing this? I try to make something up, but can't think of anything.
"Well, it was nice outside and I guess I thought I heard that the buses broke down." I tried, and failed, to speak confidently. Though it was true, it came out more like a squeaky question that a believable answer.
"Stop trying to come up with terrible excuses, it's pathetic," she rolls her eyes, "Continue."
"Okay, got to school, went through my classes, walked to Layla's—"
"Aha! You went to a friends house without my permission? How unfortunate for you." Mommy looks at me with false empathy. I feel sick. I had only gone over there to get a bracelet I had leftover there the last time I saw her.
"It was only to get—"
"It doesn't matter Clarabelle. You went over there without my knowing and for that, you get punishment 7-12."
"Bu—"
"No buts, that is final." She finishes with a sharp glare and walks away.
You're probably wondering what "punishment 7-12" is. Let me explain. Mother has made us memorize a book full of consequences, each assigned a different number. This is the page for punishment 7-12:
PUNISHMENT 7-12: Housebound
You are not to leave this house under any circumstance, except of course in the case that a emergency arise or to go to school. You are refused the ability to go outside, talk to people through your window, communicate through any device, nor will you tell any person, outside of those who live in this house, that you are housebound.
You will be dropped off and picked up from school by me. You will be monitored during any and all activities. You are not to be given any privileges such as:
Electronics
Outside communication
More than two small meals a day
Privacy
Free time
Yup. Pretty intense. It's okay though, she does it because she loves us. She really does love us, I know she does. If she didn't she would have sent us to live with Daddy. I really hate that they got divorced, even though they both needed the break. Daddy didn't want anymore children but mom did, so when she got pregnant with Hanah he left. With only me, Mommy, and child support to pay the bills, life got really difficult. It still is, but it has gotten easier.
<>
Later that day...
I'm in the building bought by my mother waiting for 8:00AM to arrive. After Mommy told me about my punishment a couple hours ago, she sent me straight to the building I use to babysit. The outside of the building is colorful, with a giant mural of playing children inside. It looks warm, happy, inviting, and sweet—everything I hope the children I watch feel.
Today I am schedualed to look after the Jonsons(Kimberly, Kiara, Khalia), the Edwards(Jimmy, Farah), the Ramirez's(Lizzy, Leo, Vivian, Anthony, Valentina), the Kinues(Anna, Ian, Leah), the Willows(Hannah, Amelie, Ruby) , the Gilberts(Mark, Tyson, Conner), the Bradleys(Hector, Allen), the Fouts(Addison, Miley), the Milans(Kylie, Helen, Harper, Kyle), the Dillons(Linda, Eliza, Tammy, Johnny, Timmy), the Petersons(Camila, Asher, Max), the Wintons(Heaven, Hope, Amity, Noelle, Everyleigh, Levi), and the Tomblers(Archer, Shane, Rick, Alec, Rex, Teagan). The oldest being twelve and the youngest being two months. It's so fun to watch all of the kids find people their and make friendships bloom.
I sit in the kitchen and grab a snack while I wait for everyone to get here. I then move to the door fifteen minutes before time in order to be there when the Kinues arrive. They're always early.
TAP TAP TAP
Ian is knocking on the door with a big smile on his face and an even bigger gap where a tooth used to be. The one he was so eager to lose the last time I saw him. I open the door and engulf him and his sisters in hugs.
"Bellie, guess what happened!" he excitedly asks in all of his six-year-old glory.
"Tell me!" I match his excitement with a smile on my face. He would wiggle his tooth all day long, showing everybody how loose it was.
"I lost it! My tooth! Look Bellie, it's gone!" He opens his mouth wide to show off the hole.
"It's all he ever talks about anymore," Mrs. Kinue says with a small smile. She is a very small woman, her and her husband are both from Taiwan, making sure I help them with their Mandarin. Which I had to learn to be fluent in. That and Spanish, Italian, French, German, Greek, Latin, Polish, Russian, Chinese, English (England English. Did you know that the word for eggplant in OG English is aubergine? Weird right?) and that's it. Having a mother like mine has many benefits, being forced to learn ten languages is one. I will forever be grateful for Mondly, Babbel, Pimsleur, and Duolingo.
"It's exciting! Losing your first tooth is something you will always remember," I defend. "Wait a second. An idea is forming..." I make dramatic motions with my hands for emphasis, earning a laugh from all of the Kinues "...got it! We need a 'Ian lost his first tooth party!' I will cover everything, all you guys need to do is be there." Ian cheers and spins around in circles while Anna and Leah look at each other in excitement. What can I say, everyone know I can through a mean party. Well, more like really, really nice party.
"Can we Mommy?" Ian looks at his mom, "Daddy? Pleeeeaaassse?"
"How about you three go inside and we'll talk it over with Clarabelle. Okay?"
"Okay," The three of them say in unison.
"Wǒ ài nǐ zàijiàn," Mr. Kinue says to his children.
"Wǒ ài nǐ," They each say back and walk in.
"Clarabelle, I really love the idea, but I just don't think we can do it," Mrs. Kinue explains with a solemn look on her face. I frown and scrunch my eyebrows in confusion. "We don't have the stuff for a party, nor do we have enough to buy any. I just—we just can't do it."
I laugh. This is just hilarious. They thought that they were going to have to put the party together? I said all they had to do was show up!
They look at me with an incredulous look. Almost offended. I quickly see where my laugh could be misinterpreted and explain myself.
"I am going to take care of everything, don't worry. As I said, all you have to do is be there." I smile and they quickly do the same. Relieved, no doubt.
"Thank you, Clarabelle," Mr. Kinue smiles at me teary-eyed, the mirror image of his wife. "We owe you the world and so much more." And before I have any time to argue they're gone.
<>
"Shh shh shh," I soothe, trying to get Amity to calm down. I swear, the "Terrible Two's" are nothing compared to four-month-old teething.
"BEWIE!" I turn to see Vivian and Ruby both staring at me teary-eyed. Speaking of Terrible Two's...
They love to play together, though they sometimes get into little fights.
"Yes my sweet and beautiful babies?" They both start babbling angrily and I can't understand a word. "Wait," they both stop and look at me. "Vivi, you go first."
"Ee ook my favit bunbun an I say no an—an see don wifin an den Bunbun heh get off," she cries. I don't know if you understand two-year-old, so here is the translation: "She took my favorite bunny and I said no and she didn't listen and then Bunbun's head got ripped off." Wait.
"Bunbun's head got ripped off?" she nods. "Oh no!" They both start babbling again. "Girls, it's Ruby's turn to say what happened."
"I wan pay wih da bun an see too i-it from meh an see tol meh n-no an den ee ay dat-dat it wa her's but I pay wih it tomor-morrow...no das noh wite. Beyie?" (Translation: "I wanted to play with the bunny and she took it from me and she told me no and then she say that it was her's but I played with it tomorrow...no, that not right. Bellie?") Toddlers really do speak in one big sentence.
"You mean yesterday?" I help.
"Yeah. Yeserday. I pay wif it ye-ye-yeserday an so I not wet go an-an-" she starts crying harder, "HER HEAD, BEYIE! HER HEAD!" The poor baby sobs. I set Amity in one of the cribs in the nursery, then come back to the girls.
"Oh girls, come here," I sit on my knees and they step into my embrace. "We can fix Bunbun, don't worry." They both look up at me.
"Weeyee?" Vivi asks in a small voice.
"You can?" Ruby does the same.
"I can. In fact, I have an amazing idea,"
"You do?"
"I do." In the main area there are arts and crafts tables. They have different types of crafts, including kiddie sewing projects. With jumbo needles, pre-made holes, and different shapes, even the little ones can make their own stuffed animals.
I sit them down at the tables and set out the materials out in front of them. Vivi gets a purple needle, purple bunny, and pink string and Ruby gets a pink needle, pink bunny, and blue string.
"Okay, now I'm going to show you what to do, alright?" They both nod quickly. "So, you pick up the needle with the string tied on," they do as told, "and you stick it through this hole," I point to a hole right through the top of Vivian's bunny's ear. "Make sure to hold the back and the front of the bunnies together so that they come out as one, pretty bunny," I explain. Both of the girls get the needles through the right holes and look up at me.
"All done," Ruby makes jazz hands as a way of saying she's finished.
"Yay! Next, your going to put the needle in down the next hole." I demonstrate on a rectangular piece of felt. I'm actually really impressed at how well Vivi and Ruby are doing, seeing as they're two. Once they've done as I instructed, I move on to the next step. "Good. Now, you pull it up through that hole." I watch as they put their concentrating faces on and do as I told them.
"I dih ih!" Vivi shows me her small stitch. Darn really impressed, I'm extraordinarily impressed.
"Perfect! Now all you got to do is remember: down. Up. Down. Up. Okay?"
"Yes!"
"Great. I'm going to go fix Bunbun while you make your own Bunbun's." I laugh a little and then get up from the bright green table that's barely a foot off the ground.
With a broken Bunbun in one hand and a needle and thread in the other, I start stitching it up. Just as I'm about to tie it off—
"BELLIE!"
Here we go again...