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“DADDY, ARE YOU okay?” The bunny heads on the tops of her slippers still kept her toes warm, even though Rex had chewed off the noses.
Daddy unrolled the string on the top of his arm, sighed, and leaned back in his red reclining chair. “I’m fine,” he whispered, then realized who she was. He twitched and turned his heavy head toward her. His eyes were dark and watery, and he looked sick. “Leona, you need to go back to bed.”
She stood there, tugging at the bottom of her nightgown.
“Did your night light go off?”
Nothing.
They stared at each other for a few seconds, her huge brown eyes swimming in tears. The goosebumps raised up on her bare arms, but she stood still.
“You cold?” he asked, fighting to keep his eyes open. The corner of his mouth drooped, but to her, it looked like a smile.
She shuffled toward him and turned around. Reaching his bony hands under her arms, he pulled her up into his lap. The chewed brown blanket covered them both now, and he brought the edge of it up to her chin. He rubbed her arms for a short while until she felt his hands go slack around her and heard his breathing slow.
The clock ticked away above the hole in the wall, and she let herself glance across the room. Another man, younger than Daddy, uglier than Daddy, lay sprawled out on the couch. His arm hung over the edge as he sucked in a rattled, sleepy breath, and an empty needle lay on the floor below his bruised elbow. Sweat glistened on his pale skin, soaked in the moonlight slinking through the rip in the curtains.
“Daddy?” she asked, leaning against him, feeling him stiffen as he noticed her again. “Who’s that?”
Daddy grunted, sniffed, and brought his mouth close to her ear. “That, baby, is a junkie.” His breath was sour, like pickle juice and cigarettes. His arms around her melted the goosebumps. “Take a good, long look, Leona. Never forget the sight. Those junkies will do anything for their next fix.”
She stared at the needle on the floor, thinking it looked a lot like the one next to Daddy’s chair. It was probably a good idea not to say anything about it. Pulling the tattered blanket farther up toward her face, she kicked out one foot and then the other, watching the bunny ears of her slippers flop up and down.
Daddy gave a little jolt. “What is it, baby?” He gave her elbow a weak squeeze.
“When’s Mommy coming home?” Daddy was never sick like this when Mommy was home. Mommy could put him to bed, wipe his forehead with a cool towel, and rub his tummy. And sing a song. She always felt better when Mommy sang her a song.
Daddy’s eyes opened a little when he craned his neck to look at her. “You miss her, don’t you?” She nodded, watching his eyes move in a dizzy circle around her face. “I miss her, too. Let’s go back to bed. I’ll tuck you in.”
He patted her shoulder, getting ready to sit up. She shifted in his lap to look at the scruff on his cheeks and waited. He took a deep breath, then out came a muffled snore. She watched a pool of saliva gather at the corner of his mouth and topple over the side in a lazy string towards his chin. Sniffing, she pecked him on the cheek and slipped off the chair, making sure to tuck the frayed blanket back into place.
Her bedroom was at the top of the stairs, and she only tripped once on her nightgown. The door squeaked when she pushed it in, and she shuffled sleepily to the mattress in the corner. Her sheets had ponies on them, but the ones closest to her head had faded to smudges. Plucking her slippers off, she slipped under the sheets and pulled them tight around her. A small weight settled behind her legs. Rex never left her bedroom when Daddy’s friends came over. She didn’t like them much either, though they acted like she wasn’t there.
“Hi, Rex,” she whispered, and the wiry brown mutt nuzzled her legs. She reached down to scratch the top of his head, and he gave a short, concerned whine. “Thanks for tucking me in.” She grabbed one of the slippers and nestled it between his legs. “Sleep tight.”