Dorian

Has Bibi Eaten?

He checked the watch on his left wrist. “Phew,  it’s almost 8.” He started  to put his laptop in his bag as he made to leave the office.

He tried to keep his mind on
the steering wheel. “I just hope she’s fine”, he muttered under his breath. The door wasn’t locked when he got home. He slung his bag over his shoulder and gave it a light push.

She was in their room, looking out through the window, at nothing. “You didn’t lock the front door. What’s wrong?”. She didn’t even move an inch. “I forgot. Sorry. “, she answered mechanically.

He sighed. He put his jacket down and sat close to her. “Are you okay? What are you staring at? ”
               “Nothing”.
She still didn’t move, she didn’t turn to look at him. He put a hand over one of hers. “Are you fine? ” She then turned slowly to look at him. There was something that looked like a faint smile on her face. “I’m always fine, aren’t I? Has Bibi eaten? ”

He looked down and stared at his toes. He had not removed his socks. “Bibi is not here, dear. He died. Last year”, he managed to say,  trying to suppress the lump that was now forming at the back of his throat.

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“Oh. Right. I forgot”, she said and looked away again. Bibi was their third child, they had lost two before him. She had never been the same after the baby died. She quit her job, stopped talking and was now slowly losing it.

He pulled her closer, into an embrace and began to slowly rock her, like the baby she seemed to be turning into.
“You smell nice today, Daniel ”
“Thank you ”
“Has Bibi eaten?”, she asked again.

A lone tear trickled down his cheek. “Yes. Yes, he has”
             

19 comments

  1. I have a story like this, but it’s slightly different but about how not having a baby destroyed a woman. I’ll share the link when l find it and post it 🙂 I wrote it years ago omg!

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  4. Such a moving piece… There’s a point where people have been hurt soo much by the world, by life, that their minds deliberately loose touch of reality and, in a bid to numb the pain… Would have given you a thumbs up, but I’m using them to dry my eyes.. Nice one @thatgirldorian

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  5. this was a really moving piece,… there’s a certain level of pain most people reach, that their minds deliberately loose touch of reality and sanity, all in a bid to numb the pain, the pain that continues to gnaw away and hack at the softest pulp of their hearts,….. a pain only time can heal… ,, would have given you a thumbs up but i’m using them to dry my eyes… nice one @thatgirldorian ..

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  6. I was randomly tagged to this story on twitter (did not like that) but I really like the story. You need to take a more little more care with punctuation and spacing between words.

    This line ‘like the baby she seemed to be turning into’ suggest she’s becoming infantile, but we don’t see anything that suggests that.

    She ‘stopped talking’ but she she’s holding a conversation with her husband.

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