Crystal Ball

“How about this one?” I asked tiredly, pointing to a dark wood twin bed set. Janie cocked her head, looking at the bed frame and dresser before shaking her head. “Come on, Janie. You need to choose one of them,” I pleaded. We had been shopping all morning. I had picked out a simple bedroom set for myself and a comfortable recliner and couch set. All that was left was Janie’s bed set and a dining room table, everything else we already had at the apartment.

“How about this one, Momma?” Janie called from my right. I slowly followed her voice to find her standing in front of a white bunk bed and dresser, a smile on her face. “I like this one!”

“Baby, what do you need a bunk bed for?” I asked with a smile.

“Well, where is my brother going to sleep?” she asked, her doe eyes looking up at me.

“What brother?” I furrowed my eyebrows. “Janie, you know you don’t have a brother.”

“Yeah, but I might someday.”

“Well, someday, when you do have a brother—or sister—we’ll get them their own bed. Right now we just need a bed for you.” Her shoulders slumped at my words. “How about we take a break and go get some lunch, huh?” I offered as a distraction.

“Can we go to McDonald’s and play at the play place?” she asked with eager eyes.

I shook my head. “I know somewhere better.”

“Better? What’s better than McDonald’s?” she asked, incredulous. McDonald’s was the best in her world.

“You’ll see,” I sang as I grasped her hand and led her out of the furniture store.



“This is Jay Jay’s house,” Janie observed when we pulled up to my childhood home.

“Yes, it is.”

“But you said we were going somewhere fun for lunch,” she complained.

“I did. And we will. But I need to get something really quick first.” I unbuckled her and let her jump from the car before taking her hand and walking up the driveway. Not bothering to knock, I walked through the front door, calling as I did, “Dad? Jus? It’s me. Anyone home?”

“In here, baby doll,” my father’s voice called from the kitchen.

I let Janie walk in front of me as we followed my dad’s voice. “I just stopped by to get a few things out of my old room,” I started, my voice failing to continue as I saw my father was not alone in the kitchen. “Oh, I’m sorry. I didn’t know you had company,” I apologized.

“That’s fine. Its just Dottie from next door.”

Focusing on the visitor, I realized that the dark haired older woman was indeed my dad’s next-door neighbor. “Oh, hi,” I greeted awkwardly.

“Emma!” she exclaimed, her hand clutched to her chest. “Oh my, it’s been so long.” I nodded as I watched the excitement overcome her features. Before I knew it, she had her arms wrapped securely around my shoulders, crushing my form against her own.

Pulling away, I smiled at the woman who had once been much like a mother to me. “Hi, Dottie.”

“Oh, and who is this?” she asked, noticing Janie as she clung to my leg.

“This is Janie, she is my, um,” I started, unsure how to finish. Per my request, my family had kept Janie’s existence—and the fact that I was even pregnant once upon a time—from everyone. Therefore, I had to make a choice. Being back in Maryland, my secret was bound to get out at one point or another. So, why not come clean myself? Rather than let the rumor mill run ramped as everyone tried to piece together the past. “Janie,” I started again, picking the small girl up into my arms, “is my daughter.”

Dottie was visibly surprised. She looked to my father, who smiled apologetically, for confirmation before examining Janie closely. “Oh, wow. I had no idea,” she confessed. “How old is she?”

“She just turned four,” I answered as Janie held up four fingers, choosing to show Dottie, rather than speak.

“Four?” she questioned, her voice calculating. “That would mean…”

“I was pregnant when I moved to Maine,” I finished for her.

“Oh dear, why didn’t you ever say anything?”

I shrugged, a sad smile on my face. “It wasn’t exactly something I felt like sharing.”

“Mom?” a semi-familiar voice called into the house, slowly making its way to us.

“I take it he doesn’t know, either,” Dottie whispered just before the owner of the new voice entered the kitchen. I shook my head quickly in response.

“Dad said you were over here, I wanted to ask you something,” he stated, looking only at his mother.

“What is it, dear?” she asked, her eyes darting momentarily to me before landing on her son again.

“I just wanted to know if you—” he trailed off, his eyes making contact with my own as he followed his mother’s gaze. “Emma?” he asked in disbelief.

I nodded numbly, not at all ready for the run-in with my former best friend. “Momma? Who’s that?” Janie asked from her perch on my hip, her finger pointing at the tall boy taking up the entry to the kitchen.

“Janie, why don’t you go find Uncle Jus? Okay?” I set the girl on her feet before she nodded and ran up the stairs in search of Justin. After she left the room, it was silent. I could feel Alex’s eyes on me as I looked anywhere but directly at him. I could sense Dottie’s curiosity as she waited for one of us to break the tension.

Thankfully, though, my father spoke up instead, “Well.” He clapped to gather everyone’s attention. “Dottie, I know you didn’t plan on staying, but if you’d like we can take this reunion into the living room,” he offered.

I shook my head before she had a chance to respond. “Sorry, Dad. Like I said, I just stopped by to grab a few things. And I promised to take Janie to Gilman’s for lunch. Maybe another time?” I compromised blindly, not knowing if there would be a next time.

“Why don’t we tag along?” Dottie asked. “It’ll give us a chance to catch up a bit. Alex, you don’t have any plans, do you?”

“Actually,” he started. “I do. Vanessa and I are going to watch the game at her parents’. I was going to ask if you and Dad wanted to come, too. But I guess not,” he mumbled as he turned for the door.

“Alex?” Dottie yelled after her son. “Aren’t you at least going to say hello to Emma?”

He threw a glance over his shoulder, though his eyes did not trail anywhere close to me. “Hello, Emma,” he replied unemotionally. And then he was gone.