Baby Can I Hold You

The moment Carrie gently placed the car seat on the floor of the living room Elle was over fussing with the baby, leaving Carrie to go listen to whatever Jen and Kelly was talking about.



'I'll get you a drink...you want to take off your coat.' Kelly fussed round the kitchen as the young woman sat still at the table not looking at anything. Carrie studied her closely, the deep bruises around her eyes swollen lips, if Carrie didn't know any better she would think she was looking at Kelly. That sick feeling she got whenever she visited Kelly in hospital was coming back just from looking at this stranger in her kitchen. The closely Carrie got the more she saw Kelly, the same hair cut same height, even the body shape was the same. Making herself known Carrie sat across from the broken woman.



'Does he know your here?' Carrie looked directly at her.



'No...' shaking her head she stood pushing herself back against the kitchen sink.' Please don't tell him im here...he doesn't know where I am....please don't tell him.'



'It's ok...' Kelly directed the girl back towards the table. ' Carrie stop asking questions.' Kelly said through gritted teeth. Everything went silent again as Kelly went back to making the drinks, a single tear ran down Jens face as Carrie watched her. Reaching for a paper napkin from the middle of the table Carrie leant over to hand it to the crying girl. Kelly heard the loud bang as she turned she saw Jen back on her feet shaking and a shocked looking Carrie standing at the other end.



'She was crying...i was just giving her a napkin.' Kelly walked Jen back to the table before bring the drinks back.



'Do you need doctor?.....' Kelly looked closely at Jen's face, she wondered how many times she looked like that.



'No...Paul took me when it happened.'



'He did this?'



'I was late home....he told me, he warned me not to be late........he had an important meeting...i was to make dinner....i wasn't there on time.'



'And he beat you for that?' Kelly looked towards Carrie shocked.



'Kelly this is what he does.......It's always the littlest of things.' Carrie slipped her hand over her girlfriends as she realised how bad Kelly's life had been.



'He's stressed.' Jen added. ' He's got a lot of work...he's missing Elle.'



'And he promised he'll never do it again.......he cried?' Carrie asked. Jen nodded.



'Is this the first time he's done it?'



'He's always been so nice'



'You know you can't go back.'



'I'm afraid not to.' Jen admitted.



'He'll do it again.......Now he knows he can do it to you.....if you go back your just letting him know it's ok to use you as a punch bag.' Carrie was trying her hardest not to get angry with the woman.



'What about your baby?' Kelly asked, she wanted Carrie to be quiet.



'He gets so angry with him...when he found out he was a boy he was so happy....but he says he's not like Elle.....he cry's a lot.'



'Wait.....the babies Paul's?' Kelly asked.



'Yes...he's a month old now.' Kelly quickly nodded.



'Paul cheated on me?' she sounded hurt Causing Carrie to turn to her.



'And that annoys you?....He beat you through your whole marriage....he almost killed you and him cheating annoys you. ' Carrie knew getting angry at Kelly wasn't helping but she really felt like going looking for Paul.



'Kelly he told me your marriage was over......I met him in his work......he told me he was there cause you were pregnant ...he stayed so your career didn't suffer from being a single mom.' Jen was now trying to comfort Kelly.



'A wife beater and a cheat....i sure know how to pick them.' Kelly whispered.



'Hey.....'Carrie placed her hand under Kelly's chin till they were looking at each other. ' You made a mistake....you got it right this time.' Carrie placed a gentle kiss on her girlfriends lip. Kelly could feel Jen's eyes on her as she broke away from Carrie's lips.



'Don't worry being with Paul doesn't turn you gay......I was that before I met him' She tried to joke.





Three heads shot up as they heard the small cries from the living room.



'I didn't do anything' Elle yelled.



'He's hungry.....can I go get his food from the car?' Carrie's stomach turned as she heard Jen as for permission to do something, It was something she caught Kelly doing at times. Even though she couldn't remember anything her mind was still working they way Paul wanted it to.



'You go...i'll try and get him to stop.' Kelly made her way towards the crying baby as Jen left through the front door. Carrie stood watching as her girlfriend gently picked up the crying child, she rocked it back and forth against her chest and the small crys soon stopped.



'Wow.' Carrie said as she watched fully into the living room.' Mommy never loses her touch.'



'I really don't know how I did that' She said in amazement as he watched the small baby cuddle closer into her.



'You can't help it.....one touch from you and we all fall in love.' Carrie ran one finger over the babies head. 'Looks so much like Elle when she was a baby.'



'He does?' Kelly looked down, she couldn't see it herself, but she could only remember from the pictures Carrie had shown her. No one heard Jen enter the house again, she stood watching as Kelly rocked her son back and forth and Carrie and Elle fussed over him. Silently laying the bag down at the door she turned and walked out again.