Friday - Delayed Motions (The Big Freeze)

Father laid on his back, his fingers interlaced behind his head. He was staring up at he ceiling, as if prepared to initiate a round of sit-ups, or crunches. But he remained still, looking up at the ceiling. Its white, speckled features pricked the edges of his corpse, tearing small scratches into his existence. Father rubbed his arms for warmth while staring at the ceiling. Its devoid nature belittled him. It engulfed him.

There were no sounds in the small, creaking house for once. It all reflected a silence that echoed against every object, amplifying the house. Father fell like a lost Alice in it. He closed his eyes and saw that animated Disney character falling down his eyelids until finally the character had consumed him.

Father's weight receded over the past week. Mother was working more than ever; Baby and her new sister, Little Baby, were at their grandparents' house before they left for Florida. Over there, there was a pretty cocktail bird. The house was flagrant with spices and the smell of Spanish wallpaper rotting away with Spanish accents.

The window behind Father always changed, like a mirage. There were different types of lights passing through it - snow, cars, street lamps, pedestrians. Each radiated upon him, but he squirmed under the glow. His eyes closed tightly, shunning everything out around him. Including Mother's forthcoming vehicle in the driveway.

Father should've aroused from the couch and greeted her at the door with a complacent smile, ready to radiate his own love and light for her. But that love and light was lost somewhere deep in a chasm in the crevices of his heart. He felt his heart pumping less and less, slower. With his eyes closed, he awaited for Mother's loving hand brush against his warm cheek. He waited for her glow to cascade down him and filter into his own light. He wanted to regenerate her light into his own so that he could love her back.

But her light fleetingly said hello to him - it passed like all lights. It was like all the other lights outside of his window - they fell, swept, over him quietly. Father mounted off the couch and steathily walked down the hall with exuberance. He stood in the frame of the door to his bedroom, watching Mother slip her shirt off. He examined the dashed, black bruise on her back. When she lifted her arms over her head, the bruise frowned at him. It cried like a Baby at him.

"Shut up!" Father yelled. Mother turned around in surprise, her eyes alarmed. Father picked up Mother's statue of Jesus Christ and threw it at her. Jesus's outstretched arm scratched at her stomach and then fell to the floor with a dull thud. His arm broke.

"Trey, what the hell!" Mother exclaimed. Father was panting furiously.

"Who the hell do you think you are?" Father exclaimed. "You think I don't know? You think you can walk right past me and get away with it? Megan, I have eyes!" He gripped her around her wrist. "I know what you've been up to," he muttered accusingly. "You can't fool me."

Mother quivered underneath his menace grip and stare. "I don't know what you're talking about," she stammered. She faltered with her words and her eyes were bulbous in fear. She looked at Father with a Baby's - rather a doe's - eyes. "Trey, I don't know what you're talking about," she repeated again, only more confident. "Please, let's talk about this in a calm manner."

"How can I be calm when my wife has been having an affair with her boss?" Father gnarled. His words slashed at Mother's throat, deducing volume from her voice box. She cleared her throat, but still, no such volume for authority took control. Instead, she whispered, "That is not true. How could you accuse me of that?"

"It's so obvious, Meg," Father drawled, rolling his eyes, even smirking. "All those late nights at the office. I mean, come on! I'm not that dumb." His grip on Mother's wrists became stronger, twisting them into wrinkles, into bracelets of wrinkles. He yanked at her wrists so that she had no choice to look at his cold, grey eyes. His ruthless tenacity was an attribute that Mother admired greatly, but when it was reflected in these eyes, these grey eyes, she was in knots. She wanted to wretch her wrists from Father's grueling, exasperating anchor on her and run to her parent's house for safety within her birthright family.

Mother squirmed underneath his sustaining grip, trying to pry herself. Father hardened his hold on her. She managed to whisper to him from her tremulous shaking, "Trey, those late nights are what pays the bills. It's what keeps this family from living on the streets." But Father, Trey, scoffed at her words, dismissing them back down her throat to choke upon. Mother was beginning to ache in this revelation, but she could not surrender so easily. She had to stand her ground not only for herself but for her daughters, her Babies.

"I want you to quit, Megan," Trey demanded. "You can find better than that job anyways."

"Trey, I'm not going to quit," Mother stated firmly. "I've been working there for too long to just quit right now for no valid reason. I'm not going to quit." Her newfound authority did not dwindle for long. It didn't surpass Trey's unquenchable anger. Trey gripped harder around Mother's wrist, twisting them into bracelets. The more Mother struggled, the more it hurt. Trey wasn't satisfied when his wife, Mother, didn't understand the message. His hand made a soft thack against her cheek, his wedding band imprinting a single furrow across it. With her eyes closed in saddened defeat, Mother released cold dew drops of tears down her cheeks to dowse the harsh flames licking at her. Trey, Father, loosened his grip from watching Mother cry. He cradled her against him, Mother's head resting against his shoulder. He apologized in a soft whisper and said, "I love you so much. I just want what's best for us as a family, that's all."

---

Father pushed the memories of that night away, storing them in the boxes piled in his closet. But Mother couldn't easily forget. She had a furrow of Father's wedding band imprinted across her cheek. She went to work the next day with it still there. She went to pick up her daughters, her Baby girls, from her parents' house with it still there. She went to the grocery store with it still there. Little Baby noticed it first; her little finger traced the line and looked at Mother with identical, inquisitive eyes.

Baby voiced what Little Baby was thinking, "Mommy has an owie," she said. Mother's smile told Baby that she was fine, but her eyes remained aloof. Baby pouted for Mother's pain. "I make it go away," she told Mother. Baby pressed her tender lips against Mother's imprinted furrow, releasing her spiritful kiss to relieve the pain.

"It feels much better now," Mother remarked, smiling politely. "Thank you, darling."

Baby smiled widely at the betterment of Mother's faked prognosis. Her bangs fell into her dark brown eyes, hiding the showcase of a starlit happiness. Mother swept her bangs aside to gaze at the littlest twinkles of the universe playing out in her daughter's eyes.

Mother took her two Babies back home, driving in the clear skies of the summer season. Baby was anxiously babbling to Little Baby in their own, unique tongue. They both were smiling and laughing when Mother reflected in the rearview mirror. Little Baby, with her black, curling hair was Mother when she was younger. Baby was the image of Mother's sister as well. Mother felt like she was watching the past.

"Mommy, we're hungry," Baby cried out. "Hambre! Hambre!" Mother giggled at Baby's tenacity in the Spanish language. She knew that Baby enjoyed spending time with her Ecuadorian grandparents. Abuela taught her some easy Spanish words while Abuelo had built a playground for the two Babies to play on.

"Okay, okay, we're almost home," Mother said, smiling. There was never a moment, except for temper tantrums, that Mother couldn't stop smiling at her little Babies. Their innocent naivety was adorable. Mother enjoyed answering Baby's pestering questions about the world around her. While all Babies seemed to have asked the questions about why is the sky blue and where does the snow come from, Mother believed that her daughter's questions were in earnest to learn more about the world and its culture. She imagined that her Baby would drift off into college someday with the thirst for knowledge. She would see her Baby in studious eyeglasses, examining textbooks thoroughly with a pink highlighter.

"Home!" Baby exclaimed. Little Baby made a triumphant noise. Baby exclaimed even further when she saw Father exit out from the front door. She quickly unbuckled her seatbelt and dashed out of the car, running into her Father's arms. He hugged her tightly and lifted her off the ground, swinging her like a little airplane (that could). Mother watched Father and Daughter play together, laughing, while she unbuckled Little Baby. Little Baby wrapped her chubby arms around Mother's neck and whispered Little Baby words into her ear which tickled, which only they could understand.

"I'm thinking about taking the day off tomorrow," Father announced to Mother. Each one carried a Baby into the house. "I want to spend some time with my beautiful daughters." Mother nodded her head; for once, she had no words to say. She couldn't deny Father of his natural right to spend time with his daughters. As Mother stepped through the threshold of the front door, Little Baby traced the furrow in her cheek again and kissed it plaintively.

Mother cooked macaroni and cheese for dinner while Father built buildings (unlike the Sears Tower) with his daughters. Baby enjoyed bouncing her Little Mermaid ball towards her Father when she had the chance; Father watched her smile each time Ariel flounced her fiery red hair across the floor. Baby clapped victoriously when the ball was clasped in Father's hands. When the ball had ran away underneath the couch, Baby cried, "Uh oh!" and hid a smile behind a small palm. Father chuckled at his daughter's hidden humor. Baby imitated him and then crawled under the couch to reach out to a trapped Ariel. Father tackled her chubby legs and she squirmed underneath the couch; Father then gently tugged her out from underneath. Baby laid splayed across the floor, her smile dully noting her Father's own humor. Father tickled her; Little Baby crawled over to join in on the action.

It wasn't long afterwards that Mother finished the macaroni and cheese. The family ate dinner together, despite Little Baby's strong protest against her baby food ("No!"). Father laid Baby to sleep, reading her a story - Mother sang Little Baby to sleep in her rocking chair.

The next morning Father let Mother sleep in when he heard the Babies rustling in their beds and waking each other up. He took both of them and kissed them good morning on their foreheads, then picked them up and carried them into the kitchen for breakfast. Baby had Lucky Charms while Little Baby had her baby food. Father imitated the spoon to be an airplane for Little Baby; Baby slammed her fists on the table, shaking milk out of her cereal bowl. Father glanced at her and gave her a stern look; she gave him one equally back. "I'm done," she firmly stated. "No more." She pushed the bowl full of cereal away and went into the living room to watch Barney, the purple dinosaur.

Father sighed, giving Little Baby the last spoonful of baby food. She gurgled in contempt, letting her food spill over her lips. Father wiped it up while picking her up and traveling into the living room.

"Sky," Father said. He sat Little Baby down on the couch, resting her against a pillow. She watched her sister's hair swiftly move to the side and back to the television set. "Skylar, darling, come here." Baby shook her head. Father tickled her waist and finally, she turned around with a bright smile on her face.

"How about you and I and Anna go see Sue today?" Father asked. Baby nodded her head eagerly, her hair flying against her shoulders. "Let's go get dressed then, girls." Father picked up his Babies and dressed Little Baby as Baby found her own clothes for a day at the museum. While Little Baby looked coordinated and cute, Baby had snuck into her Mother's closet and picked up a long shirt. She wore it over her own flower printed shorts and jean hat. Father laughed while Baby modeled her clothes for him.

"Let me help you," Father suggested. Once Baby was dressed in a yellow sundress and white sandals, he went into the kitchen to grab his wallet and keys. Mother had left a note but Father passed it, grabbing his keys and wallet. He rifted through it to find his money, but all his fingers grabbed was a cruppled ten dollar bill.

"I swore I had gotten money from the ATM the other day," he muttered under his breath. He searched every pocket in his wallet and when all he found was a quarter and a penny, he threw the wallet against the counter. "Damn it, Megan," he swore. He went into the the Babies' bedroom and picked them up in his arm. While the babies laughed at each other, swatting at each other, Father sternly stared ahead, his mind fueling with a green monster. 

"Get in your seats," Father demanded to his daughters after setting them down in the backseat. Baby had gotten into her booster seat and sat obediently strapped in, but Little Baby was much too young to know what to do. She sat dumbfounded on the seat, looking at the windows and her sister buckled. Baby, Sister, attempted to get her Little Sister into her own seat, but she couldn't do so unless she unbuckled. So she did. With immediacy, Father had ignited the car in a fury and sped out of the driveway, throwing Baby forward against his seat. 

"Owie, Daddy," Baby whined. "Daddy going too fast."

"I said get in your seat!" Father yelled at Baby. Baby whimpered under her breath and gathered herself back onto the seat. She wrapped Little Baby into her little arms. Little Baby looked up at her, her imploring eyes observing her Big Sister's bangs that hid her own eyes. She sifted her little fingers through Baby's bangs to find her eyes and was surprised to feel a soft liquid sprouting from them. Little Sister felt the substance between her fingers, trying to examine what it was. She glanced up at Baby again and saw that her lips were trembling.

By now, Father didn't heed any attention to them. All he was concerned about was Mother. How deceptive she was. How she betrayed their family. He cursed out loud and honked his horn in anger. The Babies cried at their Father's frustration. Baby cried out, "Daddy," in a long drawl, attempting to capture her Father's faltering attention. But Father couldn't hear her. He had blasted the radio to an irate sleet of rap, slating behind a curtain of sirens.

Little Baby was howling now and Baby was attempting to please her. She hugged her, but Little Baby shoved her away. "No!" she loudly protested. Tears stained down her cheeks, cloaking them past a satin touch. When Baby touched her cheek, her fingers felt past the satin - it tore into rivulets of silk. Baby cleared her throat of the water that had accumulated down in her throat. When she felt her esophagus dry, she intook a deep breath and screamed in an earsplit, "DADDY!!!"

"What?!" he yelled back. Father reflected back into his rearview mirror in order to see his daughter, but instead, he saw blinking red and blue lights flashing towards him. He muttered words to himself under his breath, talking about how he was innocent, a pawn. He sped even more; everything around him was blurring into nothing. His adrenaline pumped, shot, straight into his heart and he rolled down the windows. He exclaimed in the wind, thrusting his fists in elation.

Baby's throat felt dry, too dry, to say anything else, or cry anymore. Little Baby was howling and Baby tried to shush her. She hugged her and felt that her pants were damp. Baby watched Mother many times take Little Baby's pants off to change her diaper, so Baby attempted to do what she always saw her Mother do. Little Baby's pants clumped against her legs but Baby still tugged at the waistband. But Little Baby started kicking her legs when Baby had the pants half-way down. Baby was getting frustrated at Little Baby's self-absorbed sadness. She wanted Little Baby to stop; but she wouldn't stop until she had her Father's attention.

"Daddy," Baby whimpered. But she could tell that Father wasn't willing to capture her attention or her sister's. She retreated back into her seat, curling into a ball. Little Baby was howling while Baby tried to soothe herself. They found themselves catapulting against the seats once again, falling like heavy lumps to the floor. Little Baby's cries were becoming insistent and louder. Baby wouldn't look up from the floor.

They didn't know that Father had jumped from the highway to escape the police. All they did know was that the police was their friend, holding their hands to take a ride in their rescueing cars.

Sorry that it's a little long (okay, so it's more like an epic). But this is like the major point of this part.