Lilith

 

“You want me to do what?”

    “Mortimer and some of the scientists he's been working with have a presentation to give this morning, ” Bella said. “We need you and Randy to watch the girls.” One of those girls was held securely in Bella's arms, and Lilith had no idea how long she would stay happy. Based on what she'd seen, Alice didn't really like to stay in one place very long and Lilith figured it was only a matter of time before she started begging to be set down. Other than that, Lilith didn't know anything about babies. The only baby she had been around was her cousin, and that had been when she was little. And now Bella was asking her to watch one, along with two first graders?

    “What about you?” Lilith asked. “Why are you going with him?”

    “For support,” Bella replied. “He's worked hard on this and I want to be there to share this moment with him.” Bella was going to support her husband? Did people really do that? How many times had her mother gone to support her father at a Llamas game? Zero. But then she realized that she had done that herself. She had gone to some of Dirk's basketball games the previous school year, but he almost never played and was really unhappy sitting on the bench all the time. He had wanted to finish the season, but Lilith couldn't stand to see him suffer and had convinced him to quit. He had thanked her for that every day for the next two weeks.

    “You don't get bored doing that?” Lilith asked Bella.

    “No,” Bella replied. “It's actually really... fulfilling to see him doing something he loves.” That Lilith understood. She had noticed her feelings for Dirk strengthen while watching him play some of his favorite games, which now that she thought about it, had started before she even knew they were feelings.

    Alice began to fuss and Bella shifted the baby in her arms to a more comfortable position.

    “I can't do this,” Lilith protested.

    “Sure you can,” Bella told her. “it's only for a couple of hours and Randy and Alexander will also be home.” A couple of hours? Lilith figured she could manage that long with a baby, couldn't she?

    Before she could gather any more thoughts, Bella handed her Alice. Lilith awkwardly held the squirming baby, trying to shift her into a better position. “She's been fed and changed, and shouldn't need a nap before noon. You just have to keep an eye on her. Amanda and Anne will keep themselves busy, but you should make sure they don't do anything dangerous.”

    Mortimer came down the stairs in his lab coat. He gave Alice a kiss on the cheek before turning to Bella.

    “Are you ready to go?” he asked.

    “I think so,” she answered. She turned back to Lilith. “If you need anything, you can reach me on my cell phone. Mortimer's will be off.” Bella gave Alice a goodbye kiss. “We'll be back by one at the latest,” she said and then she and Mortimer left the house.

    As she watched the car leave the driveway, Lilith wondered if this had been a last minute decision Bella and Mortimer had made. Why else would they have sprung this on her like that? Still, it felt nice. No one had really trusted her with this kind of responsibility before. She was pretty sure that her parents didn't even trust her to stay home alone more than a couple of hours.

    She looked at the baby in her arms. Could she even still call her a baby? Alice was on her feet, but was very unsteady at walking. She still looked like a baby. How old was she anyway? Bella had said that her first birthday had passed not too long ago.

    “Come on Alice. Let's find you something to do.”

    Lilith carried Alice into the family room where Randy was hooking something up to the TV with two very excited girls behind him.

    “Do you play video games?” he asked.

    “When I'm at my boyfriend's house.” Lilith responded. “I don't have them at home.” Her parents didn't think Angela would play them, and they weren't going to spend that money on Lilith alone. They had no idea what Angela actually did on her computer half the time.

    “We don't get to play much,” Amanda said. “Mom doesn't like games.”

    “It's not that she doesn't like them,” Randy told her, “she just doesn’t like us spending too much time in front of the TV.”

    “What games do you have?” Lilith asked, setting Alice on the couch.

    “I brought them all out. Why don't you come take a look.”

    Lilith browsed through the games Randy had set on the floor. There were some games Dirk had, some he didn't. She pulled out her phone and sent him a text telling him to get online. She knew his ID by heart for when she got enough money to buy herself a console. She also noticed some toys placed up against the wall. She picked them up for Alice, but when she returned to the couch, Alice was nowhere in sight. Great. Five minutes into babysitting and she already lost the baby.

    “Guys, where's Alice?” she asked.

    “Wasn't she with you?” Randy said.

    “I don't know,” Anne replied.

    Lilith took off searching the entire first floor but came up empty handed. Alice couldn't have left the house, could she? Could she even climb the stairs? There was nowhere else to look so Lilith headed upstairs just in time to see someone exit one of the bedrooms.

    “Lose something?” Alexander asked, his niece in his arms.

    “How did you...”

    “She wandered in my room about a minute ago.”

    “Thank goodness,” Lilith said, relieved. “I just set her on the couch for two seconds and she was gone.”

    “Yeah she's been doing that ever since she could crawl,” Alexander explained.

    “That would have been nice information to have,” Lilith said, although now that she thought about it, she did remember Bella telling her to keep an eye on Alice.

    “Why don't I watch her and you can help Randy keep track of Amanda and Anne?”

    “You don't mind doing that? Don't you have something else you want to do? Randy's hooking up the game console.”

    “I don't really like video games that much,” Alexander said, shifting Alice so the baby couldn't reach his glasses. “I'll play them with the girls once in a while when they ask me to, but I'd much rather read a book instead. As for the girls, well, watching them is the least I can do. My parents have given me a place to live and food to eat, so if they need me to babysit, I'm not going to tell them no. I'm just doing my part and I don't have that much to do today anyway except think about some important decisions.”

    “Like what?” Lilith asked, intrigued. Alexander was so different than most of the boys she knew. She had never met a guy who preferred reading over video games. She didn't even get why anyone would want to.

    “Like where I'm going to go to college.”

    “Don't you have another year to figure it out?”

    “Well, I have to apply in the fall. I've narrowed it down to two. The big university back in Pleasantview or the one in the next town over.”

    “What made you chose those?”

    “Well, going back to the Pleasantview area would be kind of nice. At the same time, I really don't want to be too far away from the family, especially Mom.” Lilith could see where he was coming from. After all, he had a better relationship with his parents then she had with hers. But she didn't really understand it yet, not after going to such lengths to get away from her family. “Either way,” Alexander continued, “I'm going to live on campus. Don't get me wrong I love my nieces and sister, but I don't want them under foot all the time either.”

    Lilith had never thought about college, but in that moment, it hit her like a ton of bricks. College – her ticket out of her house, away from her parents, and most importantly, away from Angela. But where would she want to go? She didn't really care as long as it was close to Dirk. And that made her realize that there was one major problem that could throw a wrench in everything.

    “Well, based on that Chess story you told the other day, you could get into any school in the country,” Lilith said. “With my grades, I'd be lucky to get into community college.”

    “Actually, community college will take anyone.”

    “Really?”

    “But you're stuck living at home.” Her face must have fallen because Alexander continued. “You're only a sophomore, right? You've got time to think about it. Right now though, Randy probably needs help with the girls.”

 

    Lilith got back to the family room to find the gaming session in full swing.

    “Did you find Alice?” Randy asked.

    “Yeah,” Lilith said, taking a seat on the couch. “Alexander is reading to her.”

    “I saved you a controller,” Randy said, handing it to her.

    “Bring it on.”

    Lilith had never played that particular game before, Dirk didn't have it, but she caught on fast. She quickly surpassed Amanda and Anne, who weren't great at the game but were having a great time none the less. Once she got the hang of it, they started a network and asked Kelly, Jill, and Joanna join the game.

    “That's weird,” Randy said after a few games. “Looks like someone wants to join.”

    “Oh my goodness,” Lilith said, her eyes wide as she looked at the screen. “It's Dirk!”

    “What? Your boyfriend? How'd he get the pass code?”

    “I kinda sent it to him in case we played a game he had. Sorry.”

    “Didn't you say he doesn't have this game?” Anne asked from her spot on the floor.

    Lilith noticed her phone buzzing and pulled it out to find one message from Dirk – a photo of the game they were playing fresh from the store with the word surprise under it.

    “No way,” Lilith gasped as she stared at the photo.

    “What is it?” Amanda asked. She and Anne got up and ran over to the couch.

    “He bought the game. He actually bought the game.” Tears came to her eyes. It was the nicest thing anyone had done for her.

    Randy had no choice but to let Dirk join. The first game, Amanda won, only because Randy and Kelly royally screwed up and it was Dirk's first game. After that the girls didn't stand a chance. But they didn't mind. They were too busy enjoying themselves.

    In between games Randy pulled out his phone and started laughing.

    “What?” Lilith asked him.

    “I told Kelly about your boyfriend buying the game so he could play with us, and her response was 'Where do I sign up?'” Everyone in the room bent over laughing.

    Once Bella and Mortimer returned, they were able to play for another 30 minutes until lunch was served. Lilith was still pleasantly shocked about Dirk's actions. She found that she liked that feeling. She liked it a lot.

 

Dirk: Did you enjoy the surprise?

Lilith: OMG, I'd kiss you right now if I could.

Dirk: Don't tease a guy like that ;)

Lilith: Can I ask you something?

Dirk: Sure.

Lilith: Have you thought about college at all?

Dirk: A little, I guess.

Lilith: Where would you want to go?

Dirk: Maybe someplace big. Somewhere I can get a degree I can make money with.

Lilith: Money isn't everything.

Dirk: Yeah, but you know Dad and I barely got by for a while. I don't want to live like that again.

 

    Lilith held the phone in her hands filled with new resolve. She couldn't imagine not going to college with Dirk. Sure college was still a couple of years away, but from the beginning Dirk had wanted the kind of relationship his parents had had. And as Lilith's feelings for him grew, the more she realized that was what she had wanted too. What if he made a bunch of new friends and didn't have time for her anymore? What if he met another girl? There was no way Lilith was going to let go of the best person in her life, but there was no way she could get into the kind of school he would probably end up at. Lilith didn't have a choice. She would have to pull her grades up.

    She sat on her couch and opened up the backpack that her mother insisted she take with her. Lilith hadn't planned on using it, but now she was pretty glad she had brought it along with her. She pulled out the book in front. Science. Might as well start with the hardest one first. But when she looked at the problems of her latest assignment, she had absolutely no idea where to start. She skimmed the section of the textbook only to find half of the information she needed. Where was the rest of it? Was it something they had covered earlier in class? She looked in the previous chapter, but again came up short on information. Great. It was going to be like this all the way back to the beginning wasn't it? She couldn't learn a whole semester and a half worth of science in a week. And that was only one class. She supposed she could try math instead, but she had a feeling it would be the same thing. How was she supposed to get good grades if she didn't understand anything?

 

Lilith: I can't do this. It's way too hard.

Dirk: I was able to, and I know you can. I believe in you.

 

    Lilith sighed and sunk into the couch. It was great that Dirk had faith in her, but his grades had slipped when he was a child. This was high school science she was dealing with. They were two totally different things. She knew it would be easier to just give up, but if she did, her future happiness would be at stake. She wouldn't be able to catch up once spring break was over, and she knew that she would have to find someone who knew this stuff inside and out. Someone who would be willing to help her. It was too bad there wasn't anyone like that around here. A few tears escaped her eyes. Then she realized there actually was.

 

    “I need your help.” Mortimer looked up from his papers. He seemed surprised to find Lilith standing by his desk.

    “What can I help you with?” he asked.

    “Everything,” Lilith said, putting her textbook on the desk. “I don't get any of this. And if I don't get better grades, then I can't go to college, and if I can't go to college, I'm going to lose my boyfriend and...”

    “Slow down,” Mortimer said. He looked at her calmly. “Just because you don't go to college doesn't mean you're going to lose your boyfriend.”

    “I can't take that chance.”

    “Still, catching up is a good idea.” Mortimer moved the papers he had been working on. “How long have you been behind?” Lilith looked at the ground. She really did not want to admit this to a top scientist.

    “Since the start of the year,” she practically whispered. Mortimer didn't say anything. He just opened the book and looked through it. Still, the silence was torture. Lilith could only imagine what horrible things were going through his mind.

    “Let's start from the beginning,” he finally said. Lilith took a huge sigh of relief as Mortimer got up from his desk and led her over to the fancy couches, placing her textbook on the coffee table. “What happens if it let go of this pencil?”

    “It'll fall.”

    “And why is that?”

    “Because gravity's pulling it down.”

    “See, you know something already. Now we know how fast the pencil is moving right now...”

    “It's not,” Lilith said.

    “Exactly. And we can measure how high off the ground it is. Once we know this, we can figure out how fast it will be falling when it reaches the desk.”

 

Bella

 

Bella smiled as she watched her husband explain a subject he was passionate about to Lilith. Not only did he love making new discoveries and learning new things, he enjoyed teaching them to others as well. That's what he loved about science. That, along with his ambition, was why he had excelled at it. He had always been that way. When they were in first grade he had asked their teacher exactly how a caterpillar became a butterfly. Bella hadn't even thought about it, but the more they searched for the answer in the school's library, the more interested she had become. And the more she had admired her best friend for his perseverance. Eventually, they had come across the answer, and it hadn’t been the complete answer they had been looking for. But Mortimer hadn't been upset. Instead he smiled as told Bella, “Maybe I'll discover that someday.” It was no surprise that Mortimer had earned the esteemed title of Mad Scientist in a relatively short amount of time, becoming one of the youngest to ever do so. Looking at him now, she was happy to see that he was able to help teach Lilith about something he loved, especially since he had been nervous about having her over in the first place.

    “You're blushing,” Lauren said. Her boss had given her the day off since he had called her in on Saturday. She was now sitting on the sofa in the hallway, a cup of tea in her hands.

    “I can't help it,” Bella replied, walking away from the bedroom door and taking a seat next to her friend.

    “So I take it your responsibility thing did it's job?” Lauren had wanted to come over that morning since Bella originally hadn't been planing on going to the science center. But she changed her plans when Mortimer had suggested they try giving Lilith some responsibility.

    “Yes and no,” Bella said. “She lost Alice within the first five minutes.”

    “She told you that?”

    “No, Amanda did. It doesn't matter though. Alexander took Alice and my guess was that he talked to Lilith as well.”

    “Better than the time I lost... never mind.” Bella turned to look at her friend. “Okay,” Lauren admitted, “I found her trying to get into the dryer. And by trying, I mean not succeeding. Where do kids get these ideas?” Bella shook her head. She couldn't really blame Lauren though. Bella and Cassandra had found Alice in all sorts of places after the baby had learned to crawl – under the table, on the roof, climbing into the shower in the master bathroom, the list went on and on. And now that she was walking, it would probably get worse. “Anyway, how's Lilith adjusting?”

    “Pretty well,” Bella answered. “She's opened up to me a little bit, which is a good thing. She needs an adult to talk to since she doesn't have a good relationship with her parents.” Lauren laughed.

    “What teenager has a good relationship with their parents?”

    “Mine does.”

    “But you have to admit that Alexander is the most well behaved teen we've ever met.”

    “Cassandra was too. In her early teens at least.”

    “You can take credit for her, can't you?” Bella nodded. “Hey look, I know it must stink that you can't even take credit for how your own child turned out but you have a chance with this girl. She's got to have somebody she can count on, right?”

    “She has her boyfriend,” Bella explained.

    “But who knows how long that will last?”

    “It looks like a solid relationship considering he went out and bought a game so he could play with her.”

    “Man, why does everyone have an amazing boyfriend but me?” Lauren asked. Bella couldn't help laughing at that.

    “That, I can't answer.”

 

Lilith

 

Lilith collapsed on her couch after dinner exhausted from her tutoring session. How much science could there be in one class? Mortimer had gone over two whole chapters with her, and they planed to go through a few more tomorrow. It felt like her brain couldn't contain anymore information, but she did have a better understanding of the subject.

    Her phone went off and she smiled, excited to tell Dirk about the progress she had made. One look at the screen, however, and her face fell flat – Angela. What the heck? Why was she calling? And more importantly, why hadn’t she blocked her sister's number? She wanted to ignore the call, but she knew Angela would just keep calling until she picked up.

    Whatever Angela wanted it couldn't be good. Whenever Angela started any conversion with Lilith it was usually a fight. So why would her sister be bugging her on the one week she didn't have to deal with any of that? Lilith could only think of one reason – Angela was bored. Lilith didn't care, however, and she was going to give her sister a piece of her mind.

    “What do you want?” Lilith snapped into the phone.

    “Lilith,” came the voice at the other end. “I don't want to bother you but I really need your help.”

    Well this was almost too good to be true. Angela was begging her for help? Lilith almost laughed.

    “No,” she said flatly.

    “I'm serious Lilith. You know how to sneak around better than anyone I know.”

    “You think you can actually bug me the one week I'm free of you and then expect me to help you? Forget it!”

    “But Lilith you don't understand.”

    “There's nothing you could say that would make me want to help you. What could I possibility not understand?”

    “Dustin's been arrested.”

​

​

Bella

 

Bella was heading to her bedroom when she heard some very unladylike words coming from upstairs.

    “... Angela. I'm not breaking your boyfriend out of jail!”

    Bella reached the third floor to see Lilith throw her phone into the couch and cover her head with her hands.

    “Lilith,” Bella told her sternly, “we don't use that kind of language in this house.” She lifted her head, kind of surprised that Bella had overheard that. “We also don't speak to our family members like that.”

    “She deserved it,” Lilith said, taking a seat on the couch. Bella joined her.

    “Why?”

    “Because she's always picking fights with me and then she calls during the one week I have away from her and dares to ask for my help. She's all 'My boyfriend just got arrested.' Give me a break.”

    “Why did he get arrested?”

    “I don't know and I don't care. For all I know she could be making it up just to get me to feel sorry for her.”

    “Do you really think your sister would do that?”

    “Why not? She hates me. I wouldn't put it past her.”

    “Did it sound like she was making it up?”

    “No,” Lilith admitted. “It didn't.”

    “It sounds to me like she really needed your advice.”

    “Why did she bug me then? She has several friends and all of them have a lot more desire to talk to her than I do.”

    “Because you're her sister,” Bella told her.

    “That's no excuse.”

    “Look,” Bella said, “I agree it's best not to get involved, but that doesn't mean you should be treating her like that. She's going through a very hard time right now and the last thing she needs is someone yelling at her, especially a family member.” Bella got up from the sofa. “Take some time and think about it, okay?” Lilith nodded.

    Bella sighed and headed back to her room. One call from Angela and Lilith had turned back to the snarkey troublemaker her parents saw her as. But, Bella realized, that was probably the case because she and Angela lived in the same house. Her parents never got to see Lilith at her best – the Lilith Dirk Dreamer saw. The Lilith Bella knew she really was. Angela brought out the worst side of her, but maybe, throughout this week, Bella could help Lilith be the best person she could be around her family.