Amore Mio

II. Tenth Birthday

Two Years Later

Alice - 10

Neilson - 18

***

Alice’s POV:

I strap on my backpack, fix my jacket, and put on my favorite pink cap. My hand reaches for the doorknob, twisting it open

“I don’t care! Do whatever you want!” I can hear mom shouting from downstairs, then a loud door slam, causing me to flinch slightly.

Slowly, I walk down the creaky stairs to see some picture frames of my family on the floor, glass shattering everywhere. Cautiously, I walk around it, into the kitchen to see dad. He sat at the table with his face buried in his dry hands, tears dripping down. I open the closet, grab the broom and dustpan, then start cleaning up the glasses in the hallway.

Releasing a deep breath, I pick up the photo of my parents and me on my eighth birthday.

We went to the zoo because I wanted to see wolves, much to my disappointment, there weren’t any wolves at the zoo. I cried for hours until my parents brought me the largest cotton candy in the world. In the photo, I had the swirly pink cotton candy in my hands with a giant bite mark on the side while I sat on top of my dad’s shoulder. Mom had her head leaned against his arm. We were all smiling so happily.

The water drips on the photo, and I quickly wipe it off with my sleeve.

Mom and dad loved each other a lot, but recently it seems like all they do is yell at each other.

When I finish gathering all the large glasses, I dump it in the trash. I grab the vacuum and start cleaning up the rest of the smaller shards then put it away.

Walking back into the kitchen, I notice how dad didn’t move, still staring at the table. “Daddy, I’m going to school,” I said.

Dad looks at me with his red, watery eyes. He wiped off the tears and took a sniff. “Let me grab my key, Princess, and I’ll drive you there,” he said in a low cracking voice.

I shake my head. “No, it’s okay, daddy. Nina’s dad said he could drive me there,” I said. Walking over to him, I kissed him on the cheek, salty tears on my lips. “Bye daddy,” I said.

He wraps his arms around me. “I’m sorry, Princess,” he whispers into my ear. I pat his back and offer him a bright smile, which he returns with a grimy one.

Walking towards the front door, I grab my black shoes and a red umbrella. When I open the door, I can hear the loud pitter-patter of rain. Closing the door, I take out the house key from my neck and lock it. Releasing a deep sigh, I throw on my hoodie and open the umbrella. I lied to dad when I told him Nina’s dad is going to take me to school. Nina’s family always leaves early for school since her siblings are all in different grades.

I start kicking the pebbles feeling my shoes getting wet, socks soaking because of the water. My legs stopped when I felt rainwater rolling down my cheeks. It just keeps on running downward for some odd reason.

Wiping the water from my face, I start skipping to school:

“What’s that over there?

A yummy chocolate cake!

Mister Mister!

Can you teach me how to bake?

The yummy chocolate cake!?

Wait! I change mind

Let me eat the cake

Or I’ll destroy mankind!”

I did my evil laugh, mind wondering if Nina is right, maybe I should change the song lyrics.

When I hear a car honk, I turn to my side, seeing a familiar black car. Quickly, it turns towards me — the window rolls down, revealing an incredibly handsome guy. “Need a ride?” he asks in a deep voice, lips tilting upward into a dazzling smile.

“Hi, Neilson!” I yell, waving my hand and skipping towards him.

Neilson moved into my neighborhood two years ago. We would always hang out when he’s free. I like that he doesn’t avoid me because I’m a little child.

I really really like Neilson.

But, everyone would always laugh at my feeling, saying how cute it is that I have a crush on him. Two years ago, I would scream at the top of my lungs that Neilson is my boyfriend, but I don’t do that anymore.

***

Alice - 9 years old

Neilson - 17 years old

I skip my way to Neilson’s house, looking down at the cupcake I just baked. “I hope he likes it,” I said to myself, a small giggle exiting my throat.

Ringing the doorbell, I stood there, twirling my hair, feeling the butterflies in my stomach. The door opened. “Hi Alice,” Mrs.Yi said softly, kneeling to my level. “Are you here for Neilson?”

“Yes, Mrs.Yi, I baked some cupcakes,” I said excitedly, hoping Neilson would like it.

She placed her hand on her chest, releasing an “Awww, you will make a great wife one day. Neilson is lucky to have you.” She pinches my red cheeks. “He is upstairs in his room, sweetheart, with a few of his friends,” she said.

I took off my blue shoes and ran upstairs, excited to see Neilson. I gripped tightly on the container, ready to knock until I heard a voice.

“Dude, I’m telling you, the person who just rang your doorbell is that little girl from next door,” a guy said in a teasing tone, causing my smile to drop.

I stood there, holding onto the cupcakes tighter into my chest.

“Guys, do you always have to bring this up!” Neilson grunted.

“Your little wife is waiting for you, why don’t you go downstairs and greet her,” another guy’s voice said.

“Come on, guys, she is like a little sister to me,” he said.

I can feel water hitting the bandages covering my fingers.

“Plus, I have a girlfriend,” he said, chuckling lightly.

“I don’t know, man, maybe give the little girl a shot. You know. Neilson. Neilson. Let’s play a game,” the first guy said in a high pitch voice.

“Neilson, I love you so much,” the other guy copied him. He made a kissing sound afterward.

“Neilson is my boyfriend,” another guy said and stomped his foot. I can hear a loud burst of laughter coming from the room.

I wiped off the water from my eyes and ran back downstairs. Grabbing my shoes, I opened the front door.

“Oh, sweethea-” before Mrs.Yi could finish her sentence, I slammed the door and ran back home.

My trembling hands grabbed the key around my neck and opened the door. I walked towards the kitchen, opening the container, I threw the cupcakes into the trash.

“Princess, what are you doing?” Dad asked.

“I’m throwing the cupcakes away,” I said. I took the last cupcake and threw it in the trash can. He walked into the kitchen while I placed the container in the sink.

“Why, Princess? You work so hard on them that you burnt all ten of your little fingers.” He held my bandage fingers gently.

I looked down to see all my fingers wrapped in bandages since it was my first time baking anything. Earlier I even yelled at dad when he tried to offer to help me bake the cupcake saying how I was a big girl, and I can do it all by myself.

I took a sniff, tears refusing to stop rolling down. “They were no good daddy.”

***

I wasn’t watching where I was going and trip on the edge of the sidewalk, falling into a puddle of water. “Owwww,” I said, feeling my clothes all sticky.

Instantly, a giant pair of arms lifted me. “Are you okay?” Neilson asks frantically, eyes looking at every inch of my soak body.

Looking upward, I saw Neilson in a pair of blue jeans and a black jacket. He takes off his coat and wraps it around me, revealing a black shirt, again, with a random unknown band.

“You’re shivering and bleeding,” he said. I looked down, realizing my blood was soaking through my jeans.

“Come on. I’ll take you home. You need to change,” he said.

I shake my head, knowing dad may still be home. “I-I need to g-go to s-school,” I respond.

“Alice, you’re bleeding and cold; you need to go home and change,” his voice became stern.

I continue to shake my head. Kneeling, I can feel the stinging pain on my knees and pick up the umbrella. Before I can take a single step, Neilson scoops me up - making me feel like a princess - and takes me to his car, putting me inside the passenger seat.

Swiftly, he runs to the other side, clothes getting soak. He turned on the engine, blasting on the heater, and pulled the seat belt down. “D-Don’t you h-have s-school?”

“School is important, but I need to take you back home, or else you will get sick,” he said in a stern tone, without any room for argument.

I lean my head against the cold window, closing my eyes, feeling the warm air, ears listening to the raindrops as Neilson drives us back. A ringing sound appeared, but I didn’t open my eyes.

“Baby, where are you?” a high pitch voice question.

“I’m not going to school today,” Neilson responds, his phone link to his car. He probably thinks I fell asleep.

“What? But you have to go to school today! I’m introducing you to my friends for the very first time as my boyfriend! I already told everyone we are a couple!” She whines, and I can feel my chest tightening.

“Babe, I have other things to do,” he replies in a fresh, calm voice.

Babe, I heard that word on tv before, something a person would call their lover. Of course, he would call her that. She is his girlfriend, after all.

“What other things are more important than us?”

“I need to take my neighbor kid home. She just fe-”

“Is it that little girl again? Riley?” she said, cutting him off.

“Its Alice,” he said in a slightly annoyed tone.

“Baby, I don’t understand why you keep on doing this to me! You ditch me twice to hang out with that little bratty girl!” She yells, her voice is no longer calm, but it’s still annoying in my ears.

He releases a deep voice “Loo-”

“Me or her,” she said.

“What?”

“I’m saying, choose! Me or that bratty little girl from next door? And remember she can’t do what I can do.”

I bit my cheeks, knowing what she meant: Kiss.

I can’t kiss Neilson because I’m too small.

I saw it on tv all the time when two people really like each other; they would kiss. But, to kiss, they have to be the same height, and I’m too short to kiss Neilson.

“Alice,” he said, and my body froze. I wonder if he knows I’m awake. “I pick Alice,” he said, and I release the breath I was holding.

“What? You choose her?” She shrieked.

“Yes, goodbye.”

“Wait, baby, I didn’t me-” he cut her off before she finished her sentence.

“Alice.”

I shut my eyes tighter.

“Alice, I know you’re awake,” he said. I peek a single eye open to see him lifting a brow at me. The blood rushes to my cheeks while I sit up straight, grinning at him. He reaches out a hand and messes up my hair.

He parked the car in front of his house and released a deep breath. “Heard everything?”

“Sorry, because of me, you had to break up with your girlfriend, again,” I mumble.

This isn’t the first time Neilson broke up with his girlfriend because of me. I didn’t know Neilson does this, but sometimes he would leave his girlfriend to hang out with Nina and me, mainly when I whined at him to play with me. The last time he broke up with his girlfriend, I was the one who was sulking, feeling like it was my fault, but there was a part of me that liked not seeing another girl around him.

He pats my wet hair, “I didn’t like her that much anyway, besides hanging out with you is a lot more fun,” he said in a teasing tone.

He got out of the car, heading towards my side, and picked me up. I wrap my arms around his neck, leaning against his chest, hearing the beating inside his chest. The house is empty since his brother is at school, and his parents are at work. He takes me upstairs into his room and starts shuffling through his closet. Grabbing a towel and a shirt along with pants, he hands it to me.

“Since you’re so against going home to change, here are these. Go take a warm shower before you get sick,” he spoke softly.

Walking into the bathroom, I turn on the warm water and take off all the wet clothes. Sitting in the bathtub, I exhale. When I saw a bottle of shampoo, I pumped a handful and decided to wash my hair. Taking a whiff, I realize it smells like Neilson, causing little knots to tie inside my stomach.

When I finished, I wore the clothes he gave me, but the pants kept falling. Grabbing the hair tie from my wrist, I tied up the pants. Walking downstairs, I saw Neilson standing there in a new pair of clothes.

“Come on,” he said, taking my hand. He led me to the couch with a first aid kit in his hands.

He sat down on the ground and started cleaning up my scraped knee while I sat there staring at him.

“Something wrong?” He asks.

Everything is wrong - I shake my head.

“You’re really quiet today, and the Alice I know is anything but quiet,” he chuckles.

“Just have a lot on my mind,” I said.

He looks at me, raising a brow, “You’re ten, what problem can you possibly have?” He asked, putting away all the stuff.

I hum, lying down on the couch. “Like what to have for breakfast,” I said, feeling my stomach, remembering how I didn’t eat today. “Or what food I should have for lunch,” I continue.

“Or what cake type you should have for your tenth birthday today,” he said.

I shot upward, seeing him pull out a box from the fridge.

He walks over towards me, setting it down on the table in front of us. “I was going to surprise you after school, but now seems like the perfect time,” he said, taking out the cake from the box, revealing a chocolate cake with little purple lilies around it.

“Why does it say, Happy Birthday, Angel?” I ask.

He sits on the floor, grinning at me. “Because you’re my Angel,” he said, pinching my red cheeks.

“I am?” I ask, and he nods his head, grabbing some candlesticks and mumbling out the number until it reaches ten then lights it up.

He pulls the table up towards me and takes a seat. I can feel his warm body beside me while I lean my head on his shoulder:

“Happy birthday to you,” he starts clapping his hand.

“Happy birthday to you,” he sways back and forth.

“Happy birthday, dear An-gel,” he taps my nose, a broad smile on his face.

“Happy birthday to youuuuuuu.”

When he finished singing, tears were dripping down my cheeks. “What’s wrong?” he whispers, eyes looking like he did something wrong.

I shake my head “Nothing wrong, I’m so happy I get to eat cake,” I said, wiping off the water.

He gave me a sly smile. “Come on, make your wish Angel,” he whispered. I shut my eyes and link my fingers. I wish that my parents will stop fighting and be happy again, just like back then.

After the wish, I blew out the candle. Afterward, Neilson would cut me a piece of cake, and we sat there on a Thursday eating cake while skipping school.

I would talk about random things, and he would sit there, listening to me while throwing in some comments once in a while. When I thought he wasn’t listening, I would ask him questions about what I just said, and he responded correctly.

Before I knew it, we had fallen asleep on the couch. When I woke up, Neilson’s arms were wrapped tightly around me, and I couldn’t help but smile. I lift a hand and poke his cheek. A giggle left my mouth, which I quickly covered up. Staring at him, his eyes were closed, a light snore escaping his throat, and I can smell the chocolate cake. I bit my lips, hearing the thump-thump inside my chest. Slowly, I move up, feeling my nose touching his.

It’s my birthday. I deserve this much, right?

Quickly, I press my lips against his then backed away. My eyes were wide open, staring at him. When I heard a snort, I covered my mouth, holding back a scream.

I can’t believe it! I just kiss Neilson! Me! I kiss Neilson

Slowly, I wiggled my way out of his arms and pulled the blanket over him. I went to the laundry room and grabbed my clothes from the dryer. I shook out Neilson’s clothes and threw it in the dirty container then put mine back on. Grabbing my backpack, I decided it was a good time to go back home, feeling like I’m on top of the world.

I stop walking and look back at Neilson’s house. “I did it! Neilson and I kissed!” I squeal to myself and start skipping home.

I stopped skipping when I saw an unfamiliar car parked in front of my house. The smile on my face drops when I see a bunch of stuff in the back of the vehicle. While I walked closer to the front door, my stomach did not feel well. I wonder if Neilson was right, it was a bad idea eating three slices of chocolate cake.

The door wasn’t closed. I walk inside, holding onto the straps of my backpack. “Mom? Dad?” I yell, hearing my voice bounce back at me.

A strange man walked down the stairs, but stop when he saw me.

“Who are you, mister?” I asked, swirling the straps around my finger.

Immediately, I can hear some heels clicking, and mom walks down. My eyes went to the luggage in her hand, “Mommy, where are you going?”

She bit her lips and kneeled in front of me. “I’m leaving, sweetheart,” she said, tears emerging inside her eyes.

“Where are we going?” I question, still wondering who was the strange man.

She shakes her head. “Not we, just me.”

“B-But what about daddy and me?” I ask, standing there, seeing the man awkwardly shifting back and forth.

She sits there staring at me as the tears start dropping down.

“A-Are you l-leaving us?” I stutter, hands tightening on the strap of my backpack. When I pull it down, blood appears. “I-Is it b-because I didn’t eat my b-broccoli last night? I promise I’ll eat it from now on!” I cry out, holding onto her shirt.

She shakes her head, removing my trembling hands. “It’s not you, sweetheart; it’s your father. I...I...I-”

She what?

My legs feel weak; the tears run down my cheeks. She releases a deep breath and pulls me into a tight hug. “Goodbye Alice, mommy, always love you, please remember that,” she whispered into my ears before walking out the front door.

The man walks out with her, and when our eyes meet, he adverts his. My legs refuse to move when I hear the car engine starting, but it quickly disappears.

And that’s it, mom left on my tenth birthday with another man, and I never saw her again.