I had carried Annie up to her room and placed her on the bed. Now that she was back home, she seemed to perk right up. “Shall we play together?” she asked.
This was one for the books. She’d never shown the least sign of wanting to play with me.
“Sure. What do you want to play with?” I asked looking at all the toys that were scattered around one half of her room.
“Let’s play with this,” she said, going over to the big doll house. It was huge with multiple stories all done in light pink and trimmed in deep purple. It had working lights and a doorbell, even a little music player inside. It was exactly the kind of dollhouse I would have loved when I was a child.
“Wow! It’s beautiful,” I said as she opened it.
“Yeah! Doesn't it look awesome! Daddy bought it for me when I was really little. It's my favorite thing in the world to play with.” She picked up one of the dolls and started taking its clothes off. “Did you have a favorite toy?”
I thought about it. “Well, when I was little, I liked my bike a lot, and of course I had some dolls too. I think my favorite toy was probably my play kitchen though. I used to pretend to cook for hours.”
“I have a play kitchen too. If you want you can cook with my stuff.”
“Thank you. It will remind me of being a child again.”
She began to redress her doll in a different outfit. “Do you like children?”
“Yes, I love little boys and girls.”
Annie looked up at me. “Is that why you became a nanny?”
I nodded “It is. I've always wanted to help kids and play games with them all day. I think it's fun.”
Annie frowned a little. “Not everyone thinks like that though. I… some nannies didn't like me very much.”
“I can’t imagine why. You are a little darling.”
“I guess it was because I was mean to them.”
For someone who knew how to drive me crazy on a daily basis I could see there was a lot more to her than I’d originally thought. She was a bright girl even if she was a little lonely and isolated at times.
“I don't think you're mean,” I said. “I think sometimes you just have bad days just like the rest of us. There's nothing wrong with having a bad day. You just have to remember to still treat other people nicely. That's all.”
Annie nodded, her face serious.
“How come your friends don't ever come over?” I asked.
Annie shrugged. “I don't like them to come over.”
“Why ever not?” I asked as I picked up one of the dolls and started dressing her in a lavish ball ground with golden shoes. The doll definitely had more money than I did.
“When we had a sleepover, Mandy said I was stuck up because my house was so big. Then the other girls started acting really weird. Now, I don't really want anyone over. I like going over to their houses though.”
I shook my head. Sometimes kids could be so cruel. It wasn't like Annie had any control over her house, her finances, or anything else for that matter. “Well maybe she was just a little jealous,” I said.
Annie shook her head. “She thinks it's weird that I don't have a mommy too. I told her I do have a mommy, she just doesn't live with me. She said I was still weird. We're not friends anymore. Sometimes I miss her though. Even if she's a butt face.”
I choked on a little laugh and tried to hide it. One thing about kids, they were always honest. When they didn't like someone, it really showed.
Annie scrunched up her face and glared at her doll like the girl was standing right in front of her.
“I'm sure there will be plenty of other friends for you to make in the future. And who knows? Maybe Mandy will come around someday. People change as they get older, you know.”
Annie smiled at me. “Do you really think so?”
“Of course,” I said. “We all have to grow up sometime.”
“So you think we could be friends someday?”
“Maybe. But you know what I would do if I were you. I’d just let it be. If she becomes my friend she does, if not, no big deal. I’d just go find other friends instead.”
Annie nodded and slipped her doll into a car. She pushed a convertible across the carpet and I thought about the fact that her dolls also had a nicer car then I did. They were living the life. I chuckled to myself at the thought.
“What are you laughing at?” she asked.
I wouldn’t tell her those thoughts. So, I began to make up a story about the doll in my hand. Annie and I created such a fun story together that I forgot we were even waiting for dinner. I think she forgot too, because when we both looked up Christian stood in the doorway.