he living room at a slow pace that indicated she was nervous yet excited. She sat me down gently next to my father. Her smile had never been so huge. An extra twinkle was in her eyes. They fluttered from my father to me, and then back to my father. She stood there in front of us, motionless. Her hands were clamped together and her fingertips were the color of my babydoll's dress, white. “Well?” my father questioned. “Guess what? Mommy went to the doctors today and I found out I am going to have another baby!” exclaimed my mother.“What! That’s fantastic,” my father shouted as he scooped her up into his arms and gently kissed her, first on the cheek with a light caress of his lips and then upon her lips which lingered for a few extra seconds. That kiss through my eyes seemed to last for an eternity.I on the other hand sat there expressionless. My new dolly fell to the floor, face down, into the plush, cream carpet. Her hair was now a tattered knot from my little girl fingers weaving in and out of it, just as my father had done to my hair. My eyes felt hot and watery, my cheeks reflected the color of a shiny read apple. I felt those tears piling up by the millisecond. The pressure behind my eyes was overwhelming; my eyes were going to pop out at that very moment. Not an utter of sound escaped from my quivering lips. I thought about the day when I may no longer be first at going down grandpa’s slide at his pool on those hot summer days. The handmade wooden swing that hung from a giant oak tree in my back yard would no longer be just mine. Every day we went shopping I wouldn’t be able to get a surprise because I would have to wait my turn. Picking out my favorite cereal just for the toy inside wouldn’t matter anymore. I would soon become a ghost. The name Meagan did not sound familiar anymore. So, I tiptoed around the corner of the living room and up the stairs, which seemed a mile ...
