Total pages in book: 48
Estimated words: 45284 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 226(@200wpm)___ 181(@250wpm)___ 151(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 45284 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 226(@200wpm)___ 181(@250wpm)___ 151(@300wpm)
“Can you lift your arms above your head?”
When I do, his smile grows.
“See how long you can hold them.”
My arms are trembling, but I manage to keep them aloft for a long time before I drop them.
Papi goes through several more exercises with my arms and my legs. He seems pleased, which tells me I’m not too far off what’s expected and normal for however long I’ve been here. I even feel more awake than I have any previous time.
“You need to eat, Little one. You’re not getting enough calories. You never finish your bottles.”
“I’ll try, Papi. I get so tired when you feed me. It lulls me to sleep.”
“I know, Baby girl, but try to stay awake this time, okay?”
“Yes, Sir.” I want to follow his instructions. I want to please him. I might be argumentative on many topics, but I don’t have any interest in not being healthy. I want to get better and be able to walk and talk like a normal person.
When Papi stands, he props me on his hip. I have pretty good control over my head, and I feel more alert. I hope I’m turning the corner. Maybe the lethargy is going to subside.
A few minutes after I start sucking the formula, though, I grow very tired.
Papi jiggles the nipple over and over in my mouth. “Try to finish all of it, Baby girl. You need the calories.”
It’s hard to focus, but I manage to drink most of it. I’m only barely aware of Papi’s praise as I fall asleep again.
Chapter Twelve
Bailey
The next time I wake up, I’m in the clinic again. It’s so frustrating. Papi has brought me here so many times. I want to be normal.
This time Chadka and Thabo are both in the room again. I’m cold. I think they turn the temperature down when I come here in order to wake me up. It works.
“There’s my girl,” Papi says. His voice is more strained than usual.
“How long was she asleep this time?” Chadka asks.
“Six hours. She was so much better this morning. She stayed awake for a long time. We went through her exercises and talked. But after her bottle she went to sleep and slept harder than ever.”
I can hear the worry in his voice.
Thabo frowns. “Did she finish the entire bottle?”
“Almost. She certainly managed to get more in her system than any previous feeding.”
I come more awake as I watch Thabo glance at Chadka before speaking again. “Stop giving her the formula.”
Papi flinches. “What?”
Chadka nods. “I agree. I’ve never seen it before, but maybe she’s either allergic to something in the formula or reacts strongly to it. Some ingredient may be acting as a depressant to her system. I’m going to look into it. Let’s switch her to a very basic cereal. You can feed it to her with a spoon. You’ll need to give her a vitamin supplement to replace the parts of the formula she needs to maintain her health.”
Papi has one hand on my shoulder. He swipes the other down his face. “Why didn’t I think of that?”
Thabo shakes his head. “None of us did, and we still can’t be sure that’s the problem, but let’s give it a try.” He shifts his gaze to mine. “I want you to try really hard to sit in your highchair and eat as much of the cereal as you can. You can drink water with it.”
“Yes, Sir.” I’ll try anything.
Chadka hands Papi a medicine bottle. I assume it contains the vitamins he mentioned. I’m not even going to ask how those are administered. I’d bet my last wakeful moment those pills are going to go in my bottom. These Eleadians really like to insert things in my butt.
After the doctors check me out in every imaginable way for the billionth time—at least that’s what it seems like—Papi settles me back in my stroller and fastens me in.
As we leave the office, I find myself looking around. I’ve never been alert enough to see anything during our trips to and from the clinic. Everything is so colorful. There seem to be dozens of new colors I’ve never seen before. The air is clean. The sky is clear blue. It’s so picturesque that it barely looks real. More like what I’ve seen in cartoons.
When I hear giggling, I glance to the side to see about a half dozen women just like me playing in a park. It has swings, slides, sand boxes, and several other pieces of equipment. It’s the kind of place where children would go on Earth. Except there are no kids here. Just adult Baby girls.
Papi pauses the stroller. “As soon as you’re able to get around, I’ll bring you here to play and meet some of the other Little girls.”
I grin, excited. The only thing that gives me pause is the fact that I can see hoops and colorful stones dangling from every one of these women’s nipples. It’s the oddest custom I could ever imagine. I’m struggling to fathom consenting to something like that. I wonder how many of the women also have their clits or labia pierced. Maybe I’ll never know. Naked breasts are the norm, but everyone is wearing a diaper.