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He brushed my teeth, and dressed me in pink Barbie pajamas before he tucked me in and lay down next to me, propped up on his elbow.
“Are you ready for your goodnight story, Candy?” he asked and brushed a bit of my hair away from my face.
I rested my head on the pillow and smiled. This was a new one for me too. My mother never took time to read to me, at least not that I can remember.
“This is the story of ‘The Ugly Duckling’ by Hans Christian Andersen,” Gabriel started and continued reading aloud for a long time.
It was calming to listen to him and he even made funny voices when he imitated some of the characters.
“So the duckling was allowed to remain on trial for three weeks, but there were no eggs. Now the tomcat was the master of the house, and the hen was mistress, and they always said, ‘We and the world,’ for they believed themselves to be half the world, and the better half too. The duckling thought that others might hold a different opinion on the subject, but the hen would not listen to such doubts.
“‘Can you lay eggs?’ she asked.
“‘No.’
“‘Then have the goodness to hold your tongue.’
“‘Can you raise your back, or purr, or throw out sparks?’ said the tomcat.
“‘No.’
“‘Then you have no right to express an opinion when sensible people are speaking.
“So the duckling sat in a corner, feeling very low-spirited, till the sunshine and the fresh air came into the room through the open door,” Gabriel read on.
I had never actually heard the whole story and found it touching and sad. When he closed the book he leaned in and kissed my forehead and whispered, “Sleep well, Candy.”
“Sleep well, Daddy G,” I whispered back and smiled with my eyes closed.
?∞?
Gabriel
For a while I lay awake listening to her soft breathing next to me. I had read “The Ugly Duckling” to her and was contemplating picking up my other book for entertainment, as it was too early to sleep. I wondered how Cia did it. Yesterday she fell asleep early too, but then again, she had complained she was sleep-deprived when I first met her.
It was amazing to see the transformation in her since we had arrived yesterday. The physical change was obvious, as she looked innocent and young compared to the hardcore exterior she had arrived in, but that was only half of it.
I turned my head to look at her again because a sudden thought appeared to me. I’m sure she had lip, nose, and ear piercings when I met her, but after she removed them I hadn’t seen any holes in her skin, had I?
I was studying her closely in the dampened light when she opened her eyes.
“Will you stop breathing on me?” she asked.
“Why don’t you have any holes from your piercings?” I asked her and turned her face to get a better look.
“Good night, G,” she said and closed her eyes again.
“Hey, answer me,” I demanded and used my thumb to force her eye open.
She batted my hand away and turned to face me.
“I don’t have any holes because all my piercings, except two, were fake.”
I touched her earlobe and felt the hole with my fingers. “You only have holes in your ears?”
“Yes.”
“But how did the others stick?”
