MADISON

I am back to being a little girl. Tied up by my wrists and toes to the bed. My green and shinny eyes just stare at the mirror me till someone else enters the room.

My mother enters and walks towards me with a forced smile on her face."Mommy," I say with a childish voice.

"Hello Maddie," she says sweetly passing her hand lovely on my head. I try to move but the belts make sure I stay still.

"How are you?" She asks me. Tied I try to say but something else leaves my mouth.

"Good."

The crystal door slides letting in a younger Wen and my younger father.

"You have visitors," says my mom as they approach me.

"Hello Madison," says Wen. "How are you?"

"Good," fooly little me says.

"We will see that," he says and I just stay quiet. My father pulls a metal table and leaves it right next to Wen. I can't see what's in there but I am aware it might hurt. "Look, Madison" Wen says and I obey. He shows me a thin golden tube that seems to be a kind of metal straw. "This is a new gift from the doctors," he says twirling the strange straw between his fingers. "We will call it, the obeyer." The name alone sends chills down my spine. What's that thing supposed to do? I look back at mom as she just stares at me insecure about what will happen.

I look back at Wen. He walks to my feet and takes one on his hand to then touch it with the strange golden tube. I hear an electric discharge. I don't feel anything, but it immediately makes little me cry. That must have hurt.

"Mommy," I unwillingly cry looking for her but she just stays where she is with tears on her eyes.

"Wen is that really-"

"Stop crying if you don't want me to do it again," he orders interrupting my mother and my cries stop leaving me sobbing. "That's exactly how we are going to work, okay? You do as I say and I won't use it. Is it clear, Madison?" I sob in reply and he threatens me with the little tube once more. "Let me know you understand. Is it clear, Madison?"

"Yes, daddy."

I wake up.

Outside it's still all dark. The city lighted up only by the moonlight and the cars. I search for the clock in the wall and see that it marks 4:26 a.m.

I stare at Alison. She looks so peaceful, so normal and real. She's just a little girl. Sleeping just like any other child her age should be right now.

She doesn't deserve anything of what she has been through. No one does.
How can they do what they do? My father, Wen... My mom. She's just so young. I, was so young.

"I am sorry," the words leave my mouth without hesitation as I grab her little hand. "I am sorry I didn't notice about you before. I am sorry I let them hurt you," I begin to cry unable to stop. "I promise you, that I won't let them take you back in there."

* * *

I serve Alison a waffle bathed in cholate syrup with some of the chocolates she bought, perfectly organized on the top. "Chocolate!" she shouts excited when she gets to climb the chair. I smile to her as she grabs one of the little Kisses.

I finish preparing my waffle, this time putting some whipped cream over it, along with strawberries and at the end some chocolate syrup over it. I am about to start eating when I realize she already ate all the chocolate that was over the waffle, including the syrup leaving just the whole waffle.

"What's that?" she asks pointing at the white whipped cream over my waffle when she notices I am staring at her. She has her lips and teeth stained with chocolate.

"Whipped cream and strawberries," I say. "Do you want to eat it all and leave just the waffle too?" I say with sarcasm and when she nods smiling with her brown teeth, I remember she does not have even the slightest idea I didn't mean that.

"You need to eat the waffle," I say and she grimaces with disgust.

"But I don't want to," she says looking at me, still with the grin. I just stare at her, startled. She said no.

"What?" I hesitate.

"I don't want to," she says now with a lower voice staring at the food. I cover my mouth. What am I supposedly to do? If I tell that her she still has to eat it, I would be forcing her to do so and maybe she would never refuse to do anything ever again. If I tell her that she can leave it, I would be showing her that it is okay to say no once in a while but then when we get back... she will refuse to the tests. But she did say no to the water. Didn't she?

I look back at her, maybe... maybe she has refused to something before.

I look from my waffle to hers again and again biting my lip thinking of an answer that on its own, could make her change her opinion. Perhaps the same excuse that sometimes parents give their children when they don't want to eat? Some children in other countries don't have food and you will be wasting it. Surprise, she won't get what a country is or other kids. Maybe telling her it is for her own good? If you don't eat, you won't grow up. She won't care, in fact none of them would ever worry about that. A negotiation? Bingo.

"I have an idea," I tell her and she raises her eyes to mine. "I will let you eat my mousse, the strawberries and all the chocolates that you want," her eyes open with illusion and she nods repetitively. "But... you are having a bath," I say and the smile disappears from her face. She stares back at the waffle and imitates me by biting her lip while she thinks of it.

"Yes," she says staring at me again. Wasn't expecting that. "I won't have to eat the waffle?" she assures.

"Nope," I say and she thinks of it once again to then nod. "Are you sure? It's going to be with water," I explain to try and change her mind. She bites her lip again. It really is like watching myself on a mirror.

"Will you be with me?" she asks and I am about to nod so startled that I don't know if telling her the opposite could change her answer.

"No" I lie. "You will have to do it on your own." She thinks about it for a moment, staring at her breakfast and then back at me.

"Okay," she nod.

"Not crying" I warn and she nods.

"Not crying," she repeats while I change her waffle for my accompaniments. "Are they really that bad?" I ask cutting a piece of both waffles that are now cold and washy.

"They are sticky," she says mouthful and I laugh getting her to laugh too when a little bit of the mousse drops from her mouth.

"And disgusting," I reply and that earns me a sweet and adorable smile from her.

When we are done eating, we turn on the TV for a while and after watching it for an hour I leave her watching the children's channel while I go to prepare her bath. I leave the water a little bit hotter than the perfect temperature and made of foam.

I go for another shirt of mine so she could use it as a dress and when I come back I find her standing next to the bathtub watching how it gets filled.

"Would it hurt?" she asks when she notices I arrive.

"It will be just like the last time," I say and she nods. "I will be helping you from outside." I help her to take her clothes off and then give her a hand to help her climb the little steps before entering the bathtub. She begins to shiver. "It will be fast," I say and she nods.

"Sit down," I say patiently to her when she just stands in the bathtub. She shakes her head. "I won't let you eat the chocolates if you don't."

"But you said I could," she complains.

"You haven't accomplish your part of the deal," I say and she bites her lip. "You are going to be fine," I say pulling her arm. She slips and falls on the tub splashing me and sinking. "Alison!" I look for her for her on the foam and pull her out to stand her up again. As expected, she begins to cry desperately, trying to remove the foam from her eyes, making it worse.

"Calm down," I say cleaning the foam from her face with my hands. As soon as she gets to open her eyes, she holds strong from my arms.

"I don't want!" she cries.

"You are okay, nothing it's going to happen to you," I tell her trying to get her off my arms. She almost falls again. "Sit down before you slip and fall again!" I say desperate a little higher than what I wanted to. She obeys but continues to cry. Now the floor is slippery too, this is a mess.

I sigh trying to regain my patience. Someone knocks at the door. I cover Alison's mouth with my hand to keep whoever is knocking from hearing her. They knock again and she doesn't stop crying against my hand. "Don't cry, I am coming back," I say uncovering her mouth.

"Madison" she sobs when I am about to get out and I turn around with my finger against my mouth.

"Shut up," I say and walk to the living room.

I try to calm myself a little before getting to the door thinking of who might that be. Maybe a neighbor annoyed for the noise? Levy? Maybe they found us and Alison's cries were more than enough to do it?

They knock again.

I open the door and get surprised when I don't find any of the people I thought of. Dylan.

"Finally!" he smiles when I open and then looks at me. I have foam all over my clothes and I didn't notice it before.

"Are you really never going to give up?"

"Nice to see you too," he says with sarcasm and I sigh only staring at him. "Wait... are you Levy's girlfriend?"

"Do you know him?" I raise my brows.

"Do you know that replying with another question isn't considered an actual answer?" he says making me sigh.

"You know... I am kind of busy here," I say starting to close the door but instead of walking backwards he gives a step in raising his hands.

"Okay, fine. You win... I surf with him, he is my friend," he declares. "Now-"

"Yeah," I reply before I even let him finish. "I am his girlfriend."

"Oh really? Because your name is not Jessica and you don't look..." he stops in the middle of his explanation looking behind me like he has seen a ghost. "Hmm...I think someone is looking for you," he says coughing and makes a sign with the head to make me look.

I turn around and find Alison in the bedroom's door, naked. The only thing barely covering her is the white foam on her body. A dark circle surrounds her feet on the carpet, she's leaking. "Alison!" I run towards her without thinking it twice.

"I am sorry," she says when I get to her and take her back to the bathroom. I sit her down again on the tub and rinse the foam off her body fast to then take her out.

I dress her up with the blouse I prepared for her and her white shorts and then when she is finally ready, we get out of the bathroom. "Chocolate?" she asks staring at me with her bright, red and swollen eyes for crying so much.

I didn't notice it before but her skin got sunburnt from yesterday's sun. I guess it burns but she isn't used to complain, unless they ask her.

"Does it hurt?" she shrugs.

"Can I eat chocolate now?" she asks again and I nod without alternative making her smile. I get out from the room and take a bunch of chocolates from the bag on the kitchen's bar. On my way back to the room I drop the chocolates when I get startled by someone who stands up from one of the living room couches.

I laugh nervously, bending down to gather up the small chocolates from the floor, and in less than a second, Dylan is picking them up next to me. "I wasn't trying to scare you," he says trying to hide a giggle, showing me his peculiar smile. I guess I blush because suddenly I feel my face burning.

"I thought you left," I laugh.

"Took me so long to find you."