May stares directly up at me with those big, blue, soulful eyes of hers. She's holding a cup of cocoa in her lap with her two little hands and looks up at me. "Auntie, can I...can I tell you a story?"
She takes a deep breath. "Pwease."
I run my fingers through her hair. "Of course. Go ahead, May."
"Once upon a time. Long long ago." May pauses, holding the cup of cocoa up to her mouth. "There was a baby. In the grass."
May blows across the rim of her cup gently. "In the dark. Underneath. A rock."
Is she trying to remember a story she's heard?
Or making one up as she goes?
It feels like the latter.
Well, I'm not going to interrupt in any case, I watch her with interest, gently petting her hair.
She smiles a bit and takes a sip.
"Babby babby."
May sips her tea. "And a flower. Near. The babby."
Her face screws up in concentration. "A soft. Soft. Soft. Flower. Right in front of the babby. Baby."
The girl chews on her lip as she thinks of her next words.
