The Bright Blue House

He didn’t know who she was. Every day, his parents would drop him off at the bright blue house, and at some point, he would always see her.

She would always swoop down on him, lift him high into the air, and then give him a bone-crushing hug.

There was another person there too, and she would always scowl when that happened. She would say something that implied putting him down, and he would always protest if she tried. He liked the one who always held him, and kissed him, and wrapped her arms around him so tight he couldn’t breathe.

Every day it was the same thing. His parents dropped him off at the bight blue house. Sometimes she would be there to greet him at the door, and he’d always stretch out his hands towards her.

But she wasn’t always there, and sometimes, his father would hand him over to the other person. He didn’t like the other person very much. She didn’t always pick him up, or play with him, or hug him, or do any of the things she did.

There was a wooden staircase when you walked in. They were big, and he and the other children used to bang on them for fun. He always tried to go up them, but never climbed higher than the first step, before someone came and took him away. He liked to bang on them though, because they made a noise when you did that.

One day he was standing by the steps, banging hard, when she walked down. The minute she saw him, her face broke into a wide smile. Then, like always, she swooped down, lifted him high into the air, and gave him a bone-crushing hug.

The next day, when his father dropped him off, he went straight to the steps. He began to bang on them, and a few minutes later, she came down. He smiled big when he saw her, and she gave him an extra-tight squeeze and tons of kisses.

He soon learnt that if you bang on the steps, she would come. She always seemed different every time he saw her. Sometimes she looked really pretty, and smelled very nice. Sometimes she looked scary, with stuff all over her face. Sometimes she was wet on top, and sometimes she was sticky.

But he never really cared.

Then, when she would come down, she’d seat him on her lap, and he would play with the shiny thing she always wore around her neck. She also had these things on her face that you could take off. Sometimes, when he saw her, they wouldn’t be there, and he’d touch her face to see where they went. Then, she would take his hand, and kiss his palm, and he would pat it against her lips, until she opened her mouth and made a sound. Then he’d smile, proud of the music he was making.

She didn’t always stay for long, and some days, was only able to give him a kiss before leaving through the big white door. He didn’t like it when she left, and he was alone with the other person. The other person always seemed to love him less, and smile at him less, and play with him less.

Every day he would go to the staircase and bang, and every time she would come down to play. Sometimes it took a lot of banging until she appeared, but she always did, and in the end, he would forgive her for taking so long.

He never thought that she wouldn’t come, because she always did, until one morning, when he went to the steps like always, and began to bang.

He banged for a long time, even making vocal noises, calling her. He hammered on the wooden step, and when he got tired of that, began to climb. Slowly, carefully, he pulled himself up one step, but then the other person picked him up and put him in the playpen, shouting something about how dangerous it was.

That day, she didn’t come down once, no matter how many times he tried.

Years later, the boy grew up, and he already forgot about the bright blue house his father dropped him off in the morning.

He forgot about the other person he didn’t like very much, or about ‘she’, who always came when he banged. He learnt by now that you didn’t always get everything by hammering on a wooden step.

When he got married, and had his own child, he began to look for someone to watch him while he was away. Within a short amount of time, he was strapping his son into a car seat, and it wasn’t long before they pulled up in front of a bright blue house.

When he handed his son over to the other person, he stopped for a moment, and looked around. While the woman’s back was turned, he went over to the staircase, and stared at the first step. Then he bent down, gently tapping it, and stepped back. He wasn’t sure why he did that, or what he was expecting, and it puzzled him a bit.

The other person turned around, surprised to see him still there. He hesitated for a moment, then asked if he could have his son back.

She gave him over, watching curiously as he swooped down, lifted him high into the air, and gave him a bone-crushing hug.

Then he kissed him, and put him down, saying goodbye before he left.

©Téa2006