Chapter Two

Beatrice:

I woke up with a sewing needle still in my hand and the puppet with a small blood stain on it the hem of its pants. I hate it when I fall asleep whenever I'm working on something. Because when I wake up and find myself stuck in the middle of a project, then I would get stressed and I would have to drive to the nearest gas station and buy myself a water bottle-sized can of D.P. (Dr. Pepper).

The problem is that I can't leave Lexi alone, even though it takes a person two to three minutes to walk to the gas station. Plus, I promised Aunt Maddie that I would keep an eye on Lexi and I don't want Aunt Maddie to throw a fit.

You know what? I thought. I'll just make some breakfast and wait for Lexi.

After putting my puppet stuff away, I grabbed my cell phone and walked to the kitchen. While grabbing an English muffin and Colby Jack cheese, I turned on my phone and checked for any messages. I got three texts from Mom, an email from some big company who wants to make a deal with me, and a voicemail from Tommy.

I put my English muffin in the toaster and I looked at Mom's texts.

How r u doin'?

Is ev'rything all right?

Txt me soon!

I replied:

I'm doin' fine…

Lexi's doin' all right and she's sleepin' right now.

I'm makin' breakfast.

B-)

I deleted the email that I didn't even want to look at and I listened to Tommy's voicemail:

"Hey, Beatrice. It's Tommy, obviously. So far, Dad and I are having a pretty good time but it seems that the fish are being really smart on Dad and me. Once we come back from Lake Gatlin, we'll have enough fish to feed the whole world. That was just an exaggeration, by the way. See you in three days!"

I deleted the message and my English muffin popped out of the toaster. I took it out of the toaster and added a slice of cheese. I made myself a glass of orange juice and took my breakfast to the living room.

I was about halfway finished with my English muffin when I saw Lexi standing in front of the television. Remember what I said about Lexi always having a smile on her face? Even in the morning, Lexi will still greet people with a smile on her face, whether they like to smile or not. But Lexi isn't smiling right now. She's standing in front of the living room television with a look of terror, tension, and nervousness.

Lexi, I said. Did you get enough sleep last night?

She shook her head no.

I think something went under my bed. Lexi replied. It looked like a brown dog…standing on two legs…with a long nose…and wears something with pink.

A brown dog on two legs, a long nose, and is wearing something in pink? I asked. Are you sure that you're not imagining things?

No but it did say something to me.

What did it say?

It said, 'Hello, little girl. Have you seen the broad?'

I looked at Lexi in shock.

Lexi, that's not a very nice word to say. I said. And I think that your mind is playing tricks on you.

Lexi just looked at me with a sad face.

I sighed and then, I thought of this method that my grandmother used to do whenever I have any unpleasant nightly thoughts in my mind.

If you still remember what that dog looked like, then grab a sheet of paper, some crayons, and a sharpened pencil and draw the dog. I replied.

What should I do after that? Lexi asked.

Then, you show me the picture and I'll show you what to do with it.

While Lexi went off to get the things that I told her to get, I took my breakfast dishes and washed them in the sink. I put the dishes in the dishwasher and went back to the living room couch.

Lexi arrived with the paper, pencil, and crayons and sat down on the floor. It took some time for her to get the outlines right and she colored outside of the lines of the drawing.

When she was done, Lexi handed me the picture and I looked at it. She just drew a pretty messy drawing of Smarty, the leader of the Toon Patrol. This is really weird.

If Lexi never watched 'Who Framed Roger Rabbit', then how does she know what Smarty looked like? I thought.Wait a minute. I'm not even sure if she saw the movie.

Lexi, I said. Have you seen Who Framed Roger Rabbit?

Lexi shook her head no.

I never saw it. She replied.

Okay, if you say that you didn't watch it, then I trust you. I said. But is this the dog?

Lexi nodded.

All right. I said. Meet me outside in the front yard. I'm getting a box of matches.

I grabbed a box of matches from one of the kitchen cabinets and headed to the front yard. Lexi was standing on the concrete sidewalk of the yard.

This was a trick that my grandmother used to do when I'm scared of something. I said. I would draw a picture of that certain thing that scared me and then, with the supervision of an older relative or family member, I would take the picture outside, put down on a pile of rocks or a sidewalk, and I burn it up.

Does it work? Lexi asked.

Most of the time, yes. Sometimes it takes a little more than just burning up a picture. If burning the picture doesn't work, then I suggest that you should tell yourself that your mind is playing tricks and there's really nothing to be afraid of. After waking up the next day, the scary thing is no longer a part of my life.

Lexi looks at me with amazement.

I threw the picture down on the sidewalk and lit a match. I carefully threw the match on the picture and the flame acted like a fast-growing mold, covering the sheet of paper and consumes it, leaving nothing but a big pile of ashes.

As the day passed, Lexi didn't seem to be bothered of this 'dog standing on two legs'. Thanks to a psychology book that I read in the library, the sign of Lexi not getting bothered by her oh-so-scary dog tells me that she's no longer worried about it.

But when night came, after brushing her teeth, worry came back to Lexi after putting on a white tank top and blue pajama shorts. I noticed that when I saw her standing perfectly still in front of the guest bed room door. I guess that burning the picture didn't work as well as I thought.

I gently tapped Lexi on her shoulder and asked,

Are you still scared about that dog from last night?

She nodded her head nervously.

Do you want me to check the room? I asked.

Lexi replied with a nervous Yes.

Whenever little kids are scared of something that comes out at night, they usually rely on their parents to check their rooms for anything. Because of being the oldest, I usually have to act like the parent when it comes to having little kids in my house.

But as I looked around in the guest bedroom, I thought about Lexi's picture. I wondered about how it strongly resembled Smarty and I even thought of the impossible.

This sounds ridiculous but what if Smarty is holding a grudge on me? I thought. What if he and the other members of the Toon Patrol got out of jail and they're seeking for revenge? Nah, that can't happen. Smarty, the other members of the Toon Patrol, Roger, and the other Toons only exist in movies and cartoons. There's absolutely no way that a character from a fictional world can cross over from their world to our world.

I was looking under the guest bed when my thoughts stopped and when I felt Lexi tap me on the back. I almost bumped my head in surprise.

Did you find the dog? Lexi asked.

No. I replied. The dog isn't in the room.

With caution, Lexi climbed on to the bed and covered herself up with the sheets and covers. She still displays the signs of anxiety and nervousness. With sternness in my sign language, I began to have a lecture with Lexi. I was probably moving my hands too fast when I had mild frustration in me.

Lexi, I said. I assure you that the dog is gone and there's really nothing to be afraid of. I want you to keep in mind that sometimes our mind likes to play tricks on us and they can be disposed of if we don't think about the silly things that we don't wish to see.

I sighed in regret because I don't like to talk to anyone like that, even if they need to absorb something in their head that will help them in the future.

I'm sorry for talking like that. I said. I promise that I'll control myself when I'm talking to you.

Lexi replied with a sleepy smile and an It's okay.

If it makes you comfortable, I said. Then I'll sit in this room until you fall asleep. How does that sound?

I promise that I'll forget about the scary dog in the morning, Beatrice.

Don't worry, Lexi. I said and patted Lexi on her head gently. You will. Let me get my sewing stuff and I'll be right back in just a second.

I walked out of the room and came back with my sewing stuff. Immediately, Lexi closed her eyes and looked like that she was going to sleep the whole night.

While I sewed two black buttons on one of the boy dolls, I would check on Lexi to see if she was doing all right. In the process of that, I pricked my finger with the sewing needle.

There's something wrong with this sewing needle. I thought, parodying a Glozell video that I watched two days ago. Stupid needle…it's RACIST!

When I finally had enough with getting pricked by a needle, I decided to write an email to the librarian and ask her if there was something that was quicker than sewing the puppets by hand.

I left the room and I assured myself that Lexi was fast asleep and she wouldn't wake up until morning comes.

I put up my puppets and walked to the computer in the kitchen. I pulled up a blank email draft on the computer and I began the email with,

"Hey, Mrs. Delong…"

I stopped there after feeling two of my fingers throbbing in pain, due to the multiple times of getting pricked by a stupid sewing needle.

After washing my hands, drying them, and placing them in a bowl of ice for a few minutes, I wrapped my fingers with Band-Aids and got ready for bed. I re-braided my messy Katniss Everdeen braid, brushed my teeth, washed my face, and stared at the mirror awkwardly.

I walked to my room and dressed myself in black shorts and an oversized gray shirt. I got myself comfortable and turned off my bedroom light.

…

I woke up with a bright light shining on my face and I looked at my clock radio on my bookshelf. It was ten-thirty-five.

I guess that I slept well last night. I thought. I wonder how Lexi is doing right now.

I got out of bed and walked to the guest bedroom. Slowly and quietly, I opened the door. Lexi is lying perfectly still on the bed and since I experienced people sleeping in and waking up at a later time, I decided to let her be.

My phone vibrates on the kitchen counter while I fix myself an English muffin and a glass of orange juice. A text message from Cressida Gruwell, a 'text-pal' of mine from Florida, shows up on the screen of my phone.

"Hey, gur, whatssup?" She asked.

"Just babysittin' little cuz." I replied.

…..

"Havin' fun?"

…..

"So far, yes."

…..

After sending my second text, I waited for Cressida to reply. I knew that it was going to take a long time because Cressida is always thinking of another subject to talk about…which will be discussed until the next few hours or so.

While waiting and eating my breakfast, I waited for Lexi to wake up. It's already five minutes before eleven and Lexi hasn't woken up yet.

I think she's probably really tired. I thought. She'll wake up in ten minutes. There's nothing to worry about.

I continued to wait for Lexi and hour after hour, waiting in patience turned to anxiety. Lexi is still not out of bed.

I finally lost it around three-thirty in the afternoon. I entered Lexi's room and walked to the bed.

Despite of Lexi communicating only in sign language, I, without trying to show anxiety, gently whispered,

"Lexi, wake up. It's three-thirty in the afternoon."

I knew that something was really wrong when I was about to gently shake Lexi awake. As soon as I put my hand down, I felt something that didn't feel like a tank top. It felt scratchy and rough and I didn't feel any signs of breathing.

I yanked off the blanket and sheets and I jumped back in shock. I wasn't looking at Lexi. I was looking at a couple of pillows to make it look like Lexi was in bed.