Whoa we're already on chapter 19

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I sat down on the ground with my crackers and juice box.

"What do you want to watch, Gee?" Ms. Iero asked.

"I wanna watch that one movie with the funny talking animals," I said.

She turned on the movie and I smiled. After a little while there was shuffling and talking behind me and I frowned.

"I-it hurts," Pete cried. "I-I'm bleeding, oh god."

I looked behind me to them.

"Here, sweetheart, let's get you to the hospital," Ms. Iero said.

Everyone looked panicked and I frowned in confusion. Everyone left except for my dad and I scowled.

"I thought we were watching a movie," I said. "Why'd they leave?"

"Just for an emergency," my dad said. "Why don't you finish the rest of the movie?"

I smiled happily as I watched the movie and my dad left the room. Frank sat beside me, wrapping an arm around me as I watched the screen.

It wasn't for a few hours later when Mikey and Ms. Iero got back home. Mikey went straight up to his bedroom and shut the door as I frowned in confusion. A while later I went into the kitchen when Ms. Iero told me dinner was ready.

"This is Mikey's favorite food," I said, looking at the pasta.

"Why don't you go bring him a plate?" She suggested.

I nodded, grabbing a plate of pasta for him before I headed up to his room. Mikey was laying in bed with his back facing towards me.

"I-I bringed your dinner," I said. "It's your favorite."

He didn't move and I set it down on the nightstand. I picked his blanket up to look at him and saw he was crying.

"What's wrong?" I asked.

I crawled into bed beside him and he wrapped his arms around me.

"Don't be sad," I whispered. "You can have blankie if you want."

I tied my blankie around his wrist like a little cape for his arm.

"Kissies and cuddles make things better too," I said.

I kissed his cheek then hugged him tight. Mikey sobbed, crying into my shoulder as he clutched onto me.

"Why you sad?" I asked.

"B-because the baby went on vacation," he whimpered.

"But I thought you said it wasn't," I said.

"It did," Mikey whispered. "My baby went on vacation because Pete's testosterone levels were too high the the baby couldn't survive."

I didn't really know what any of that meant but I just hugged him tight.

"So the baby isn't coming?" I asked.

Mikey cried as he shook his head.

"Where's Pete?" I asked.

"He's at the hospital with his mom," Mikey said.

"Do you want some crackers?" I asked, pulling some out of my pocket. "Crackers make me happy, 'specially the animal and the graham ones."

Mikey shook his head and I buried my face into his chest. He held me as he cried until he eventually fell asleep. I looked up at him, kissing his cheek.

"What's wrong with him?" I asked.

"He's just upset, baby," Frank said, holding my hand.

I ate my crackers before cuddling up with him. I fell asleep with him, feeling Frank's hand in mine.

The next morning I yawned, snuggling up with Mikey. He was crying quietly and I wiped his tears away.

"Don't be sad," I said. "Only sad people get to be sad and you're not sad, you're Mikey."

Mikey sobbed and hugged me tight.

"You're too innocent, you're too precious," he said. "You don't deserve all the things that have happened to you. Not Frank's death, not the kidnapping or the tattoo or all the bullying."

"Pete's baby isn't growing anymore?" I asked and it seemed to start making a little more sense.

"No, the baby isn't growing anymore," he whispered.

I gasped and sat up.

"We have to go to school," I said. "Mikey, come on, we're making macaroni pictures today."

Mikey grumbled, pulling the blanket over his head. I went downstairs and found my dad in the kitchen.

"I have to go to school!" I exclaimed, tugging on his sleeve.

"No, Gee, I already called you both in sick," he said. "A lot has happened and I think we all just need time to relax."

"But we're making macaroni pictures," I said.

"I'll call Linda, she can come over and help you make some," he said.

He left the room and I found some crackers in the cupboard. My dad came back five minutes later and my eyes watered when he took the crackers from me.

"We need to get some real food into you," he said.

My dad sat me down at the table with some toast, yogurt, eggs and apple slices.

"I want my crackers," I whined, pushing the plate away.

"Gee, eat the food your dad gave you," Frank said from in my head.

"I want the food," I said, pulling the plate back.

My dad looked at me in confusion as I took a bite of the toast. I was almost done with my plate when the door opened and Ms. Iero and Frank's grandpa came in. I smiled, hurrying over to give them both hugs.

"You wanna make macaroni pictures?" Ms. Iero asked and I nodded quickly.

"I'll go check on Mikey," my dad said before leaving.

We went to the living room and sat around the coffee table as Ms. Iero set up supplies.

"What's that behind your ear?" Frank's grandpa asked.

He reached behind my ear and I gasped as he pulled out a shiny coin.

"A dime!" I exclaimed as he handed it to me.

"No, Gee, that's a quarter," Ms. Iero said. "How much is a quarter?"

"It's...a fourth," I said. "Fourth of a dollar. Four quarters make one dollar."

"Okay, how much is that?" She asked.

"It's...fifteen cents," I said.

"No," she denied.

"Sixty is a dollar," I said.

"No, one hundred cents is a dollar," Ms. Iero corrected. "Sixty seconds is a minute. A quarter is twenty-five cents."

"Jamia taught me a little about money while we were on break," I said.

She smiled, putting a piece of white construction paper in front of me. She dumped out some dry macaroni noodles and handed me liquid glue. I bit my lip, furrowing my eyebrows as I concentrated on making the picture I wanted.

"How is he?" Linda asked.

"Not good," my dad mumbled, sitting on the couch.

"He lost his child, I wouldn't expect him to be okay," Ms. Iero said, sitting up beside him.

Mr. Iero set a noodle down in my page and I gasped

"It doesn't go there!" I exclaimed.

I bit my lip, carefully moving it into place.

"What's this?" He asked, holding my wrist to look at my tattoo.

"His mother decided to tattoo him," my dad said.

"It's because I'm a monster so when I die I'm not gonna go to heaven, I'm gonna go to Hell," I said.

"What? Don't say that," Mr. Iero said. "You're not going to Hell and you're not a monster. You're gonna go to heaven just like Frankie."

"I can't wait for angel school," I mumbled.

"We need to get that tattoo removed," my dad said.

"That's a long and painful process," Ms. Iero said. "Gee wouldn't want to be put through that, he's already going through enough emotionally."

"You should get another tattoo to cover it up," Mr. Iero said.

"We could try that," he said. "I'm not so sure if Gee would like it."

"Like what?" I asked.

"To get a new tattoo to cover your old one," he said.

"No," I denied. "It's scawy."

"Do you want that on your arm for the rest of your life?" He asked.

I shook my head.

"So, we can get a new one to cover it," he said.

"We can make it say 'Frank' instead of 'monster'?" I asked.

"I don't think that's a very good idea," My dad said quietly. "We can get it covered with flowers or something."

"I like flowers, they're nice," I said. "Sometimes Mama would bring home flowers to put on our table."

My tongue stuck out slightly because I was concentrating so hard as I put a little noodle down.

"Would you like to get flowers tattooed on your arm to cover up your old one?" My dad asked.

"But my Mama gave me this tattoo," I said. "She won't not be happy if I cover it."

"Do you want that tattoo forever?" My dad asked.

I bit my lip before shaking my head.

"Gee, how do you even know what Hell is?" My dad asked.

"Someone told me that's where the monsters go when they die," I said.

He sighed, leaning back in his seat. I clapped my hands when I finished and held up my art.

"Look, I made Frankie," I said.

Ms. Iero and her dad looked at it sadly.

"So pretty," I mumbled, setting it down. "Can I go with Mikey? He's sad and I don't like sad."

My dad nodded and I hurried upstairs. I crawled into bed with him and snuggled up to his chest.

"I got you a noodle so you would be happy again," I said.

Mikey took the noodle and I frowned.

"Where's your ring?" I asked. "Why'd you take it off? Aren't you and Pete gonna get married?"

Mikey didn't say anything, closing his hand around the noodle.

"Let's go play dolls, Mikey," I said.

I stood up, pulling his arm but Mikey didn't budge.

"We can play with my blocks if you want," I offered. "And we can watch Hello Kitty too."

"Go away, Gee," Mikey grumbled.

"Do you want my paci?" I asked.

I took it from my pocket and handed it to him. Mikey just set it down and I scowled. I laid next to him, trying to put the paci in his mouth. He hit it out of my hand and I whimpered. I burst into tears and hurried out of the room.

Frank wrapped his arms around me when I ran into my room. He held me tight, running his finger through my hair as I sobbed.

"He hit me!" I cried. "Only the monsters at school hit me! Mikey is always nice."

"He's upset," Frank whispered.

I sobbed as he hugged me tight, trying to calm me down.