Francis

Liam pulled up in front of a white building. It was not simple at all. It had a well-cut lawn sitting in front. And it seemed to have a yard but it wasn't visible from the front. There were tall slim trees that beautified the entrance.

"We're here", he announced realising I hadn't noticed. I turned to look at him.

" I need you to babysit...", my eyes widened at this. "...it's only for a few hours I promise. I got a call about a game, and someone special is going to be there. This is really important to me. My mom would flip if I leave my little sister alone. I owe you one Mon.. But after this.... I'll owe you..." , his eyes searched the space around us, "...anything you want".

Hearing that, my brain hit reset. I closed my eyes for like 2 seconds and they opened wider, with raised eyebrows. Liam got out and rushed to my side, opened the door and gave me his hand so I could get out of his jeep. Which I did... Still dazed. I knew nothing about babysitting, I had a babysitter myself. I was a mess at the time.. He said he would do anything, which meant it was a huge deal for him.. It was like the fate of the world rested on my shoulders and I'm like.. 'Woah, back it up a bit'

I realised he was impatiently waiting for my response. In my head I practiced how I would refuse and not be persuaded, and then, " Only a few hours, sure", that happened. As I tried to realize myself, he grabbed me in a bear hug, and rushed to get into his car. As he drove off he screamed a "Thank youu!"

I rang the front door bell. A man in his late 40s came to the door. "Welcome, you must be Lay's guest. Come with me", he said. I thought, 'Lay? Who the hell... His sister?'

He led me into a beautiful hallway with high walls and lights and beautiful vases of different plants. It was warm, nice. We went through one of the doors into a living room. I didn't get the chance to observe the scenery, but my peripheral vision suggested it was better than the hallway.

Finally we came out into a garden. The pool was on the other side of the yard. I released the breath I didn't realise I was holding in, and turned to see the man bent over a young girl at a tea party. I waved when I noticed she was staring at me, and she returned with a smile. The man walked back to me, " Let me know if you need anything ".

I didn't get a chance to say thank you, he was gone. Lay raised her tea kettle to me, as an invitation. I walked over to the table and the seats were a size too small for me, so I just sat on the grass. Her table was under a tree at the end of the garden so it was cool. Besides I didn't want to displace the rabbit and the bear, whose names I later learned where Mickey and Emma. Yeah, one of em was a girl.

Lay was four years old, and she was already a charm. We played a few games, and Mr. Leo, the man who showed me in, brought us some snacks.

Apparently he was the housekeeper. But he had a few maids working for him according to instructions. At first, I wondered why Liam needed me to babysit when Mr. Leo was there. But I concluded it was because he wasn't very cheerful... Just professional, more than Vincent. We didn't see much of him anyway.

Lay fell asleep, so I picked her up and went I to the house to look for Mr. Leo. I moved through a few rooms and didn't get to the hallway. I should've been at the hallway if I was right. I was lost. So I just walked back into one of the rooms. It was very spacious, with a few sofas on one end, a large flat screen TV on the other and a grey carpet in between. I laid her down and put my jacket over her. Maybe it was the peace of the room because I fell asleep soon enough.

*************

"Nothing happened. She just fell asleep"

"Rilay was carried away and she didn't even flinch. What if something happened. How are we to explain it to Mom?"

I heard voices, one was familiar, the other was not. I opened my eyes slowly and reluctantly, the sofa must've cast a spell on me because I really wanted to continue.

"You do things like this and run off with friends to have fun, and put your sister in danger?"

I thought 'danger?, sister?... Lay?'. My eyes pried open. I saw Liam, and an older looking Liam standing in the room. They didn't notice I was awake.

"Run off to have fun? Come on T it was a game I had to be at. You and mom went off to work so I called her in. This is no big deal really, and mom... Doesn't have to know about it", Liam said. They both turned their heads to me. I was sitting up now. They looked away again

" Next time, call Lady to come see about Lay if you have to go somewhere", said the older looking Liam, calmly.

"You know Lay doesn't like her, and she's a bit intolerant about messes", Liam argued in a calm tone now.

" Mom trusts her.. We have to. In a few years, Lay won't need a babysitter. But I'm sure She'll survive a few years", said the older guy

Liam didn't argue, and this other guy just walked out of the room. I didn't know what to say at first. Liam walked over to the sofa I was on and plopped down on it without saying a word.

"I'm sorry, about Lay I..", I apologized

" No no, it's fine. She's in her home, nothing will happen to her here. My family are just paranoid. My mom to be precise. And my brother Francis, well, ever since my dad left, he assumed the position of her protector. He never wants her to worry. So it's okay ", he assured

After a few seconds passed I asked about the game. He was thrilled. Apparently they did good, and the important person was there watching and everything. Even though he didn't talk to him after the game, Liam was excited about everything.

We went into the kitchen.. Large kitchen, and he kept narrating to me with so much enthusiasm. He made sandwiches and told the story as we ate. It was a bit slobby the way he ate and talked, and I saw the boy in him. I wasn't disgusted, it was nice I guess. I enjoyed the story even though I wasn't really interested in the sport. It was fun.

We each had half a glass of juice on the table in the kitchen and we had been laughing and just talking about stuff. Then I looked at my phone and realised it was time to go.

" I'll drop you off", he offered

"Okay", I said with a slight smile. " Oh, my jacket.. Lay, I...", I stuttered as pointed back towards the room I'd slept in. I remembered it wasn't there when I woke up.

"Oh no problem.. We should check Lay's room. It must be there. Come on", he led, and I followed.

We went up some stairs to the second floor. The hallway was more homely, not so exquisite. There were three doors, one on each side and one at the end. Liam knocked on the door on the right and then went in. The room was exactly the way a baby's room is expected to be. Lay was on the floor watching TV. My jacket was on a chair. So I grabbed it and said goodbye to Lay and I left the room. I bumped into Francis in the hallway, and Liam must've been doing something in the room because he was still inside.

I felt a little anxious especially because he stopped and just stared. I looked away, to the wall, the carpet....

" Hi, about before, that was rude. I'm sorry", he apologized and stretched out his hand. "I'm Francis, Liam's older brother"

I shook his hand, and almost forgot to introduce myself. "I'm Mon..ica, Monica. My Friends call me Mon"

"Alright well, thanks for looking after Rilay.. And we'll see whenever you visit again"

"Sure"

And as he walked up the stairs, Liam came out of the room. "Alright Mon, let's go".