Broken
Vanessa was sitting on the front porch blowing bubbles, watching as Fang tried to catch them in his teeth. The dog was normally calm and quiet, but sometimes he was still a puppy. She would stop every so often, dip the wand into the solution, and pull it back out to make sloppy bubbles. Becky had made the soap for her by hand, insisting that her way was the better way, since she grew up making them. She was toddling along, blowing bubbles as she moved. Sometimes, Becky felt that she walked better backwards than she did forwards.
The dog was running in circles around her, protectively trying to catch her in case if she fell. Though Becky had a keen eye on her, she knew her daughter well enough to know that the dog wouldn't stop her. The little girl was still blowing bubbles, twirling around on the grass, when she tripped and fell head first into the sidewalk.
In an instant, Becky was on her feet, running towards her daughter. That same instant, she heard Ama over and over again followed by a sharp shriek. "Vanessa!" She scooped the child up into her arms, checking for marks or bruises. Her hands were careful as she scanned her daughter's bare legs. A scrape on her knee, but so far nothing monumental. She then gingerly moved her hair to the side and checked her head. Nothing there. "You're okay, Nessa."
Jean appeared on the porch, looking out at the sound of Vanessa crying, hands resting in his lap, though fidgeting since he couldn't do anything about her crying. "Is she okay?"
"Yeah, nothing's broken. Thankfully she has a hard head, like her daddy." Becky shot a grin over at her husband and rocked her daughter gently. "Nessa, it's okay, honey. You're fine."
He'd grown used to her falling and taking tumbles. She should have been a gymnast with all the times she tripped on her shoes. But Becky assured him that it was normal for kids to fall. It was especially normal for toddlers to tumble; it was all part of learning how to walk. The same applied to him, and he smiled a bit at the fondness of it all. "Vanessa, do you hurt?"
"Broke, Adda."
He paused, looking to Becky. "Broke? What's broken?"
Becky checked her daughter over again, her body blocking his view. She froze, her body rigid. "Jean."
Was that a waver in her voice? Was Becky on the verge of tears? He blinked again, rolling down the porch to her. "What's wrong?"
"Smile for daddy," Becky demanded, looking to the small child.
Vanessa gave a wide, toothy grin. Except something was missing. One of her teeth. "Broke."
"No, princess, it's not broken." Becky laughed gently, patting her head. "Your teeth are meant to fall out. They'll be replaced by big, strong, adult teeth. Like Ama and Adda. See?" She smiled to demonstrate her point. "You're not broken." Squeezing her gently, she turned to see her husband fighting back tears. "You're growing up way too fast, but you sure aren't broken. You're perfect."