She peeked into the room. “May I come in?”
“Certainly.”
For a moment, she didn’t believe him. He could tell because her eyes became squinty and she looked him over – once, twice – as if she could read his character. Then, after she was satisfied, she came over, shifting the bundle in her arms.
“You asked me to come,” she began slowly. She looked around the room and he knew she was intimidated. She tried to hide it, but her eyes widened when she saw the credentials on the wall and she moved the bundle closer to her chest, a dizzy look on her face. “It was very nice for you to invite me,” she began again, her voice becoming fainter with every word she spoke.
“It’s a pleasure, really.” He smiled and gestured her to the seat. “I was impressed by your letter. You really seem to be dedicated, for an amateur.”
Her cheeks turned scarlet and it looked like she was on the verge of collapsing. He watched her shift the bundle in her arms. “I am dedicated,” she finally said. “I’m a good mother, really.”
“I believe you.” His voice was gentle and her body relaxed as he spoke.
“Thank you.”
He gestured to the seat again. “Sit down.” This time she sat.
“What am I supposed to do?” she asked. Her voice fluttered as much as her eyelashes.
“Show me your work.”
“Now?”
“Why not?”
She bit her lip hard, her eyes once more widening in fear, but she peeled away the bundle blanket by blanket until finally only a baby remained.
The baby was naked. It was a girl. Her skin was so pale-soft that the man thought if he touched her, her skin would unpeel off her small fatty frame and reveal her to be an angel. Her cheeks were rosy and as she looked at the main, a smile crept on her face and she let out a coo. And yet…
The man stood up and frowned, hovering above the woman and the baby. “So this is what you were talking about?”
“Yes.”
“She’s beautiful.”
“I know.”
For a minute, it was silent. The man stared at the baby and the woman stared off in space. She was no longer afraid, not of the man at least, though her fingers trembled as they combed through the baby’s downy hair.
“Now what?” she asked. “Is she good enough?”
“I don’t know. Let me look closer.” He plucked the baby from the woman’s arms and set her on the desk. The baby started crying.
He frowned. “Interesting.”
The woman looked to the man’s face back to the baby and once more her eyes panicked. “She isn’t like this usually,” she said quickly. “It’s her first time being away from me. She might be a little nervous at first.”
“Quiet.” The man stroked the baby’s head, letting his fingers get tangled in his downy fuzz. “She’s really beautiful.”
“I know.” She looked from his face to the baby’s and twisted her fingers into a knot. “Good enough for your purposes?”
“No.” He sighed and slid the baby on the desk, closer to the woman. “No, she’s not good enough.”
The woman stared at him. Then, very slowly, tears welled up in her eyes. “I see,” she whispered, bringing the baby back to her chest.
The man’s lip trembled and he stood up and paced. “It’s not your fault,” he began. “It’s very hard to get into this business and only a small percentage of mothers are actually approved. But you can probably sell her to some other outlet. I’m sure they’ll take her. She’s a beautiful baby.”
“Why didn’t you?”
He paused. “It’s little things, just little things."
"Like what?"
He frowned. "Look, she’s beautiful, but there are certain traits of hers that other people wouldn’t accept. She cries. She’s fat. She can’t crawl. She giggles. We have to market to everyone. Everyone, Miss, everyone! None of our clients will accept this baby if she doesn’t have the exact traits our clients are looking for.”
“But she’s only a baby!”
“And there are thousands more babies that are better than yours.”
She burst into tears.
He watched her for a moment, his face becoming stern. “Calm down, Miss. I’m trying to be nice to you.”
“I know, I know.” She didn’t stop.
He thought about saying something, but one look at her face told him that he shouldn’t say anything at all. Instead, he paced along his room, straightening his credentials on the walls. Finally, when her sobs quieted, he turned to her. “You can always go to someone else.”
“I’ve tried everyone else. They said no. All of them said no.” She took the blankets, laying loosely in her lap, and stumbled up, looking at the baby on the table. “How can I make her better?” she whispered.
“What?”
“How can I make her better?” A triumphant look came across her face. “I can improve her! You said she was too fat, but that’s okay because a little operation and it’s gone! What do you say to that, sir? What do you say to that?”
He shrugged. “It’s a start.”
“I thought you would say that. I knew you would say that.” She laughed again. “And her tongue! And we can chop her tongue and she wouldn’t be able to cry.”
He paused. “What are you saying?”
She shook her head and laughed. “What do you expect me to do? I’ve spent all of my life waiting for her – all of my life – so I might as well get a decent price off of her. And now, she’s not worth it. What else can I do?”
“You’re crazy.”
“Perhaps.” She laughed more and then suddenly threw herself at his feet. “What do I need to do? Tell me! What do I need to do? Rip out her eyes? Take off her feet? Tear out her heart? Tell me! Tell me! Tell me!”
“You might as well kill her, if you intend to do all that.”
She stopped at those words and choked. “Maybe I should. Maybe I should.”
“Sit down.”
She sat down. The baby was sleeping, her little thumb stuck in her mouth and her eyelids fluttering like a butterfly. The woman watched her dully.
“She’s beautiful, isn’t she?” she said.
“Yes, she is.” He paused. “If you want, I can inject her with something. She won’t be a burden for you anymore.”
“You don’t think she’ll ever be accepted?”
“No.”
The woman sighed and picked up the baby, wrapping her with blankets once again. “No, no, don’t worry about it,” she murmured, pressing the bundle close to her breasts. “I’ll do it myself. I’ll do it myself.”
