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“Yay!” She takes my hand and pulls me into the house. “Do you wanna come see my Barbies? I have lots. We can play with them.”
I blink a couple of times, taken aback by her enthusiasm and energy. Lilah bites her bottom lip, and I ignore the subconscious pull to her that always enticed.
I smile.
Lilah doesn’t.
“Dinner will be ready in ten minutes.”
Monica drags me down the hall to her room, which is painted a soft purple and has cream furniture. A filled bookcase is against the wall, a large bean bag chair nestled beside it. A tiny chandelier hangs from the ceiling in the center of the room, and her mermaid bedspread matches her walls.
Looks like she has everything. So different from how Lilah and I grew up. It’s nice to see she hasn’t gone without.
“This one is my favorite. But you can play with her if you want.” Monica sits down near a toy box in the corner of her room, holding up a Barbie with long blonde hair similar to hers.
I sit beside her and take the Barbie. “Thanks. Does this one have a name?”
“It’s Cecilia.”
“Cecilia. That’s a good name. I like it. Suits her.”
She smiles at me. We’ve only been playing for a little bit, but I swear I feel this girl tether to my heart and wrap herself around my finger.
“What clothes do you want her to wear?” she asks, stripping the brown-haired Barbie in her hand.
“Hmm. I’m not sure. What are my options?”
She takes the top off a small plastic container and dumps small dresses and plastic shoes between us.
I chuckle. “Wow, you have a lot to choose from.”
Monica nods enthusiastically. “My favorite is this one.” She holds up a silvery ball gown with sparkles. “But she can’t wear that right now.”
“Oh, why not?”
She looks at me, and her expression implies I’m missing the obvious. My breath seizes at how similar her expression is to Lilah’s when she was young.
“Because she’s going to work, not to a party!” Her tone matches her expression, and I attempt to hold in my laughter.
“What kind of job does she have? That might help me pick the right outfit.” I struggle to remove the bathing suit on my Barbie.
“She’s a teacher.” Monica picks a red dress out of the pile and dresses her own Barbie.
“A teacher, huh? Okay…” I move around some of the clothes in the pile before grabbing a navy dress with polka dots. “What do you think of this?”
She peers up from concentrating on getting Barbie’s arms in the dress and twists her mouth to the side, appraising my choice as though she’s the judge ofNext Top Model. “That’s good.”
She’s so adorable.
We spend the next few minutes acting out a scene between the two dolls. Something, to my surprise, I’m pretty good at. Probably because of my job.
I stretch forward to grab the little miniature dog that’s Monica’s Barbie’s pet and notice Lilah from the corner of my eye. She’s leaning against the doorway, arms crossed, and watching us. Our eyes lock and she’s awoken from her mesmerized state.
She clears her throat. “Dinner is ready if you guys want to wash up.”
She turns and heads back down the hall, not waiting for either of us to answer.
“All right, let’s go wash our hands.” I stand.
