An Eternity

Ashley felt Oaklynn’s small, sticky hand slip away from hers. She heard a small, pitiful whine fall out of Oaklynn’s ice cream covered mouth, and by the time that Ashley had whipped around to look behind her, her tiny six year old girl was enveloped in the large crowd. Ashley immediately felt sick, her stomach dropping to the very bottom of her feet. She could feel bile rising in throat, she wanted to throw up. The giant Los Angeles crowd gulped her right up, surrounding her small form and blocking her from seeing her daughter's long, blonde hair and lightly freckled skin. She began pushing through the never ending throng of people, her thoughts focusing in on nothing except for finding her little girl. She forced her way through the busy mob, people cursing and grumbling quietly at her as she went past them. A tall, lanky man even yelled at Ashley, but she completely ignored every single one of them. She could barely even hear them over her own deafening anxiety. Fear was coursing through her veins like wildfire; she had never lost Oaklynn like this before, never in her entire life. What if she never found her little girl? What if Oaklynn had been taken by a predator, a kidnapper, who would do horrible things to her? Ashley needed her daughter with her, needed her daughter by her side. Ashley’s entire existence depended on her only child. 

Oaklynn was Ashley’s whole lifeline. The little girl had been born into the world during Ashley’s junior year of high school, the incredible result of a drunken one night stand gone horribly wrong. Once everyone she knew found out that she was pregnant at the young age of just sixteen years old, Ashley was shunned by her small redneck town. Oaklynn’s biological father refused to step up for his child, and Ashley’s own parents kicked her out of the only home that she had ever known, the home that she had grown up in and spent her entire life in. For the next six months of her grueling pregnancy, and for the first year of Oaklynn's life, Ashley lived with her best friend Jacklin and Jacklin’s amazing parents. During this long period of time, Ashley was severely depressed. She had no motivation to do anything, and felt like she had no reason to live. She had no job and no money, no home to call her own, and no one to rely on or help her with her baby. But all of those feelings went away when she gave birth to her little Oaklynn. In the days and months following Oaklynn’s birth, Ashley knew that she had to stay alive for her. She knew that her daughter needed a loving mother, and she wanted to give her the best life that she could possibly manage. So, she forced herself to get back onto her feet and take care of her baby. And that’s what she had been doing for the past six years, was surviving. Just surviving with her perfect little girl. How was she supposed to survive if Oaklynn was gone?

Ashley kept pushing through the large crowd, but there was no use. There was no way she was going to be able to find her little girl like this. So, feeling utterly defeated, Ashley opened her mouth wide and began to scream as loud as she possibly could. 

“Oaklynn!” She sobbed dramatically. “Oaklynn!” 

Suddenly, a heavily pregnant woman materialized at her right hand side. She gently placed her hand on Ashley’s shoulder, rubbing it softly. 

“Are you looking for your daughter?” She asked calmly and quietly, and if Ashley hadn't been so upset then she probably would have that this woman was a bit too calm during these circumstances.

Nevertheless, Ashley nodded silently, salty tears leaking from her eyes and making their way slowly down her face.

The woman pulled her other arm out from behind her back, and clutching onto the woman’s hand tightly was a small, fearful looking Oaklynn.

Ashley dropped to her knees on the piping hot concrete, pulling tiny Oaklynn flush against her chest. She cried quietly into Oaklynn’s shoulder, making her daughter whine lightly and squirm.

The pregnant woman smiled softly, watching the sweet moment between the family members. She made sure that the two of them were safe and alright before she left them alone, sitting by themselves in the middle of the sidewalk. Of course, the mother and daughter were wrapped up with each other, so they didn’t see the woman gently fade away into the distance, not seen by anyone else. 

Oaklynn soon got tired of the long, teary hug, and all of the sappiness.

“Mommy, you’re making my shirt wet,” the little girl complained, stomping her foot against the ground. She began to push her mother's face off of her shoulder.

Ashley chuckled and pulled away, wiping the tears off her face with her own shirt collar. She looked up to see that the pregnant woman had disappeared, and she assumed that the woman had walked away once she reunited them, and had been completely consumed by the crowd. Ashley stood up shakily, grasping onto Oaklynn’s hand tightly. She led her young daughter into the nearest store (which just so happened to be a Macy’s department store) and quickly scooped her up, sitting down and trying to slow down her heart rate. She was so thankful that she had her baby back, cuddled safely in her arms. She checked her watch. It hadn't even been a minute?

That night, Oaklynn slept with her mother, cuddled up in the queen sized bed. Ashley held her little girl as close to her chest as she could, not wanting to let her go ever again. She was absolutely terrified that as soon as Oaklynn was out of her sight, she would disappear again, and this time she would disappear forever. Of course she knew, deep down, that this was almost impossible. But impossibilities don’t stop anxiety from taking over a person's mind and thoughts. So she held Oaklynn as close as possible, and they both slept quietly and peacefully for that night. Somehow, neither of the girls noticed the petite but heavily pregnant woman watching over them from the corner of the bedroom that night. Their guardian angel was busy keeping watch.