The Nursery

Submitted By lonelydesk
Words: 730
Pages: 3

The Nursery
August 31st, 1988 Beautiful cartoon clouds covered the wallpaper, giving the room the illusion that it was up in the sky. The wallpaper was immaculately placed, not a single crease of excess glue was to be seen. In the center of the room, pictures of the family had just been placed. There was a picture of a tall, handsome gentleman. He wore a plaid, button-down sleeve and had a grin far too wide for his own good. Next to his picture hung the picture of a woman. She had dark hair with a facial structure and pallid complexion that Victorian-era women would envy to no end. The pictures were labeled near the bottom with “Dad” and “Mom.” Under each of their pictures hung a final picture of a little boy who's smile replicated the man's right above him. Underneath his picture was written “Big Brother.” Ear-piercing wailing emerged from the still crib. The dark, mahogany wood looked out of place in the otherwise bright room, but it was a gift. A rancid odor arose from the crib as the sound of footsteps trotted up the staircase below. A petite woman entered the room, the same woman from the photograph. Yet, now, she no longer had the envious complexion, but rather swollen eyes with sunken bags underneath. She picked up her baby to check her diaper. Sure enough, the deed was done. The mother reached for another diaper and a soft wipe to clean up the mess. She took her baby and sat in the rocking chair next to the crib, bequeathed to her by her recently deceased mother. The rocking chair was old, but had newly been repainted right before the baby was born. The mother rocked back and forth looking out the window into the neighbor's yard. The window was large, with a grandiose, yet colorful curtain neatly tucked to the side. The velvety texture of the curtain felt ticklish compared to the cold, flat surface of the window glass. The mother placed the baby in the crib and walked over to the closet. She opened the door and pressed a switch to turn on the light above. The fluorescent bulb flickered. She whispered to herself that she had to make time to buy a replacement, just like she had whispered every previous time she opened the door. Unlike in most other houses, this closet had wallpaper just like the rest of the room. With the closest door open, the room looked nearly like an uninterrupted panorama of the sky. Just as about the baby is about to fall asleep, the little boy runs into the room. He asks his mother if he could play with his little sister. She tells him that the baby had just fallen asleep and it would be best if he just works on his homework. With a defeated sigh and a heartbroken