Melissa's Story Teller

It's been a long, boring day at work. No calls so far. It most of the day had passed, like most days, with no serious calls at all. This is just another part of my life that's not going in a swell path.

Rent is piling and my girlfriend left me, money ain't coming back as smoothly as it did before, even then, it was merely not enough. To drown my misery, red wine had been by my side at home, and colorless alcohol in a water bottle at work.

My life is falling apart...

Only 5 minutes before my shift ends, and I'll be back to my empty glasses of wine and two-room apartment...

Everyone misses their beloved home when they're experiencing the sweat and tears of work, almost every day.

Now, what harm would it be if I left 4 minutes earlier? It doesn't matter.

So I begin packing the few things I'd get to work daily, but that only took me a minute to do, so now I will grant myself the freedom to go home.

Let's face it, no one is gonna call in the next 2 minutes...

Even though I knew that something told me to just wait that last 2 minutes. To wait...

1 more minute...

I thought it was ridiculous of me; it's just the one minute and I already finished packing and ready to go. Why was I still there? What for? What was I waiting for?

*Riiiing* *riiiing*

Incredible...

For once, my gut was right. Someone had called at the last minute. It is amazingly astounding how someone made it, how I stuck to my schedule...

It is stated in the rules here that even if shift it's over, you take the call, and never hang up.

At that time, I knew nothing, but that everything... from that point on... will change... Forever...

Thus, I get back into my given seat and pick up the phone to my ear...

"911, what's your emergency?" (Me)

"I..." (Little girl)

"Yes, little lady?" (Me)

"I'm not alone..."(Little girl)

"...And?" (Me)

"Someone is... drawing." (Little girl)

"Okay, are you drawing something, little lady?" (Me)

"...No..." (Little girl)

"Okay, can I talk to your mommy?" (Me)

"...No..." (Little girl)

"Why not? Let me talk to your mommy." (Me)

"She isn't here..." (Little girl)

"What about your daddy?" (Me)

"He isn't here..." (Little girl)

"Then, where are you? Tell me so I can find you."(Me)

"...Home." (Little girl)

XXX XXX XXX

After a few seconds of silence, I go back to questioning the young girl.

"What's your name, little lady?" (Me)

"...Melissa." (Melissa)

"Alright Melissa, please tell me who's drawing." (Me)

"... Uhh... I don't know..." (Melissa)

"Alright Melissa—"(Me)

"Oh! She's drawing something!" She says excitedly.

"Oh really? What is 'she' drawing?" (Me)

By this point, I was sure it's just this little kid fooling around now that her parents weren't with her. All I need is to have this kid hang up so I can just go home.

"Mellissa, that's very nice of you sweetie, now can you just—"(Me)

"She says 'how was your day Ronald?' What does this mean, Mr. Policeman?" She asks so innocently, but that stunned me.

How... How did she know my name?

I tried my best not to think about it, it's definitely a fluke and this kid must've made a wild guess. Anyways, it was getting ridiculous and I needed to go.

"Okay, Melissa, can you hang up the phone now? I need to go to my home to rest. Now please, hang up the phone." I say kindly and instructively, slipping in some fatigue in my voice, perhaps she'll feel with me a little.

"But she wants to talk to you!" She says hopefully.

...

"Alright Melissa, what would 'she' want to talk to me about?" I ask her trying not to sound too annoyed.

"...Uhh..." She struggles for words, to which I sigh away from the microphone.

That's when I realize, this kid is either retarded or she's so lonely she wants to talk, or there could be tension between the parents.

Maybe because of the tension, she figured she'd call for help? But if that's the case, then it would make more sense for the child to call if a fight is happening in the present time. Why would she be calling like this?

"Hey, Melissa? You still there?" (Me)

"Yeah!" She answers enthusiastically once more.

"So...Where are your Mommy and Daddy?" I ask casually.

"Melissa, tell me. Where are your Mommy and Daddy right now?" I ask her again after being quiet for a while.

"... Mommy and daddy were fighting again." She finally mutters.

"Again? They fought before?" I ask her casually.

"Yeah. There's always something they're fighting about." She says rather sad.

"Is that so? Do you see them fight often?" I ask her carefully.

"...Ahuh. They keep fighting about the same thing. I don't understand." She says rather slowly as if trying to recall.

"Really?... Melissa, how old are you?" I finally ask her.

"I'm five!" she says ecstatically.

"Five?" I ask confused.

"Yeah! And today is her birthday too!" She says cheerfully.

"Her? Who's her?" I asked confused again.

"You know, Mr. Police man! The person talking to me with her drawings! Today is her birthday!" She says it like it's the coolest thing in the world.

"Alright, Melissa, can you see this girl?" I ask her rubbing my fatigued forehead.

Even though I'm not interested, it would be a good idea to question this girl and just make it damn obvious she's got an overactive imagination.

"...I dunno. She's my friend, she calls me her sister. I like her! She tells me stories every night while mommy and daddy are busy fighting. They fight every day almost." she says this in one breath then I hear her take a deep breath right after.

Great. Kid's got an imaginary friend.

"Oh! She writing something now!" She exclaims joyfully.

"That's great Melissa, just--"(Me)

"'Do you want me to tell you a story, Ronald?' She wrote to you. Mr. Policeman, take her on the offer, she tells good stories." She pretty much pleaded with me.

There's no way...

"Alright, tell me. What story does she want to tell me?" I ask not too interested.

"Uhh... Once upon a time, there were two fluffy bunnies that lived together." She starts telling her kiddy story.

"Ahuh," I say to let her know that I'm following.

"The bunny couple decided to have a baby bunny, cuz it's cute, and so they have a baby bunny girl." She tells after a pause.

"Hey Melissa, by any chance, are you waiting for your invisible friend to write all that for you?" I ask, half-interested.

I still don't believe this.

"Yeah! She's telling me the story through her drawing and writing, but she's kinda slow. It would take a minute... Oh no, she just finished writing another one. Here it goes..." She cheers excitedly.

This kid is gonna kill me...

"*Sighs* Alright, so what happens to the bunny couple?" I ask as my eyes become heavier with extensive tiredness.

"So the bunny couple has a baby bunny girl, and they named her M." She goes on to tell me.

"Em? As in a short for Emily or Emmy?" I say furrowing my eyebrows in confusion.

"No, just a capital M. so anyway, when they have baby bunny M with them daddy bunny makes mommy bunny promise not to create a baby bunny with another man bunny because the daddy bunny would be so sad and the bunny tribe would be angry at them." She explains in split breathes every few words considering that that's the longest she talked since she called.

This starts to get weird for me... This doesn't sound like an appropriate story to tell a five-year-old. More importantly...

"Melissa dear, who told you this story?" I ask her carefully with furrowed eyebrows.

"She's telling me this story. Let me finish the story! So anyways, mommy bunny promises daddy bunny that she won't make a baby bunny with anyone else. Mommy bunny and daddy bunny raise baby bunny M with lots of love and care, having a happy life. But one day, mommy bunny meets another boy bunny..." She paused for another breath, obviously, she's excited to tell me this story and it's getting weird and uncomfortable.

I bet the mom rabbit cheats on her rabbit husband alright.

"So then, mommy bunny falls in love with the boy bunny because mommy bunny was secretly a doggy just like the bunny boy."

Okay, child filter. I think I understand what's happening here.

"So the doggy-bunny couple accidentally make a baby bunny after all..." (Melissa)

Ooh boy.

"But the baby bunny did not exist yet, but they did make one. The tiny baby bunny just didn't arrive in the mail yet, but they did it." (Melissa)

Okay... This story has multiple holes in it. And what's with the child filter again? Who's telling her all that?

"Okay, Melissa. Now, can you be a good girl and really tell me who is telling you these stories?" I start getting both frustrated and worried about this kid.

"Mr. Policeman! For the third time, it's my invisible friend that's drawing me pictures that are telling me this story! Why are you not listening?" she scolds me like I'm the naughty child while she's the adult.

"Okay, okay! Have it your way then..." I say before it gets awkwardly quiet.

"So, what you were saying is that they sent for the tiny baby bunny by accident now and that mommy bunny broke her promise with daddy bunny?" I ask her to break the silence, suddenly feeling interested and familiar with this story.

"Yeah! You catch on quick! So yeah, mommy bunny becomes so scared because she knew daddy bunny would be so mad, so that makes her feel so very guilty and decided to stop seeing the boy-doggy bunny."(Melissa)

What?

"I see, what about the tiny baby bunny that they sent for?" I ask feeling more intimate to this story.

"Yeah, they decided to send the tiny baby bunny to heaven before it would arrive... Poor tiny baby bunny..." she sulks at this revelation.

"...Ahuh..." I nod absentmindedly.

"So yeah, mommy bunny goes back to daddy bunny, but daddy bunny knew everything and was really mad at his bunny wife. They started fighting each other while baby bunny M plays alone around the house."

"... Yeah... Terrible for baby bunny M." I reply feeling refreshed somehow, something sinister crawling into my chest.

"The baby bunny couple start fighting and fighting all the time, but they didn't know that tiny baby bunny was a special baby bunny and had 7 lives like a cat, and tiny baby bunny was reaaaally angry" (Melissa)

"...oh." Is all I manage to say as I listen intently to any other holes.

"Tiny baby bunny was so angry that mommy bunny and the doggy-bunny boy had killed one of her souls that she decided to punish all who caused her to die." She starts explaining more slowly.

"...Y-yeah... naturally..." I mutter through the phone my eyes unfocused.

"So she decided to visit the little hole that mommy bunny and daddy bunny and baby bunny M lived in, and talk to baby bunny M. You see, baby bunny M was so lonely because her bunny parents didn't play with her anymore and started talking to her." And she tells now a little unsure herself.

"...Yeah." I have her to go on.

"So one day, tiny baby bunny sends both mommy bunny and daddy bunny because they were very naughty at last, now making... making baby bunny M even lonelier... Not even her's her bunny parents' voices anymore..." She starts to stutter and pause in odd places in the sentences as if starting to feel afraid.

"...And... and what happened to the doggy bunny boy, then..?" I start breathing faster, however trying my best not to let it slip in the phone's speaker.

"Mr. policeman... My friend says 'you will be next, Ronald'. What does that mean, Mr. Police man?"

Thanks for reading!