Oh, Baby (Chapter 4)

After storming out of the baby store, Lizzie called all of her best friends and told them what happened. She asked them if she can be able to stay over their homes for a long while and all of them disapproved (politely) except for Debra. She told Lizzie that her father and brother were fine with having her stay over a couple of days. Lizzie tried to walk towards her bungalow until Debra picked her up on her tandem bike.
When night came, Debra loaned Lizzie some pajamas and made her sleep in a sleeping bag on the floor in front of the bed. Debra, of course, rested under the bright colored sheets of her own bed.
"How are you going to go to school without your supplies?" Debra asked, looking at the ceiling.
"Oh, I'm going to school with my supplies," answered Lizzie, looking at the ceiling as well. "I'm just gonna have to sneak into my house to get my backpack."
"How are you going to do that?"
"It's easy; my house is very simple to break into."
"That's not something to be proud of."
"On certain days, I'm not."
"Do you think you'll get away with it?"
"Debbie, if I can sneak out of the house with the clothes I usually wear, I can sneak into the house to get a bag."
"Just be careful."
"I'll try even though I won't. But I just can't face my parents."
"Why are you so mad at them?"
"Because they had sex without protection. They're adults; they should know better."
"What if they deliberately wanted a baby?"
"Then... that makes me even more mad at them! Why would they need more children? Especially after seventeen years of having just one? And seventeen years is a long time; that's like a month in Japan."
"Who told you that?"
"I can't remember."
"Because nobody told you?"
"Probably."
"Lizzie, just because your parents want another child doesn't mean they're tired of you."
"How do you know?"
"Because I have a brother. After he was born, my parents treated me and him with an equal amount of love."
"Well, you're my age and your brother is eleven. There's not much an age difference."
"Trust me, there is. When my brother was born, I started to realize that I had to grow up because I knew one day, my parents were going to need my help more than ever. I guess you can say that I sorta raised my brother a bit."
"That's weird."
"It's kind of not. My parents would risk it all to keep him safe and growing and so would I. We share DNA so I can see me in him sometimes. He's one of the best things that ever happened to me. When I can't hang out with you or the girls, I hang out with him and it's special. I wouldn't ask for a different life. Of course, there are days where he 'hates' me but without those days, I can never appreciate the good. My parents didn't have Leroy for them; they had him for me."
Lizzie wiped the edge of her eye. Hearing that speech sent a different feeling inside her body. "That's touching, Debra. A tear almost came out of my eye."
"I'm sorry."
"It's okay. And Debra?"
"Yes?"
"I'm still gonna sneak into my house tomorrow morning."
Debra sighed. "That's your choice, Liz'." She reached over to face the lit candles on her dresser. She blew them all out, eliminating the last of light inside the room. She laid down and closed her eyes. "Bonum nocte," she uttered.
"'Mama say, mama saw' to you, too."