(Disclaimer: Not. Mine.)
It's common knowledge around the squad that she has a "way" with children. Some of my colleagues like to attribute it to the fact she's a woman - and women are supposedly naturally motherly towards children. Others just shrug it off; she handles the kids better than they do and leave it at that.
They'd be surprised to see the scene in front of me right now. Ava, our daughter, just a few weeks old, screaming in her mother's arms, her tiny fists clenched. And Olivia herself, nearly in tears.
"I could hear her screaming outside the door," I comment, softly, causing Olivia to look at me, exhausted. She looks like she's about to fall apart.
"She just won't stop," Olivia sniffles, a barely audible sound. "I tried everything - she won't stop long enough to eat..." There's a look of fear on her face, now. "I don't know"-
IDid I hurt her? Does she know what I am?/I Those thoughts - or something similar - are going through her mind, right about now. It's frightening how I can know what she's thinking.
"Liv - calm down. You could be making her even more upset. Want me to take her?"
She sighs in relief and passes the screaming child to me. Ava pauses for a breath, at the change of hands and then scrunches up her tiny face and begins screaming again. "Come on, you - let's go get your mommy a glass of water."
Baby in one arm, glass in the other, I make my way back out of the kitchen. The screaming's gotten considerably quieter as I walk. Big, wet eyes look up at me and with one last gasp, she goes quiet.
"What did you do?" Olivia questions, wearily.
"No idea. Did you try walking her around?"
"Didn't think of that," she admits. "I thought I might have hurt her."
IAh./I I knew it. "You didn't, Liv. I don't think you could."
"She's so tiny - it's hard to tell."
"I was afraid I was going to drop her, remember?"
Olivia laughs, softly. The infant in my arms wriggles. "Go see Mom, huh?" I pass the baby down to Olivia, carefully.
Sleepy eyes flicker open and closed again. "Tired? So am I," Olivia comments, stroking the tiny hand. "Whaddya say we go to bed?"