Fatimah's Apartment - Morning
Fatimah stood at the door, her work bag slung over her shoulder, looking at her four friends with a mixture of hope and deep, deep concern.
"Okay," she said, her voice serious. "I need you to watch Zabira for a few hours. Just until I finish my internship shift."
Chima crossed her arms. "The baby? Your baby sister?"
"Yes. Zabira. She's 10 months old."
Alice was already bouncing with excitement. "A BABY! YES! I LOVE BABIES!"
Wony looked uncertain. "I don't have much experience with children. They're not very... elegant."
Naila was already yawning. "Babies cry a lot, right? That sounds loud."
Fatimah held up her hands. "Listen. There are rules. Important rules."
She began listing them on her fingers.
"One: Zabira is shy with strangers. She's never met any of you before. So she might be scared at first."
"Two: She has a schedule. Nap time at 1 PM. Feeding time at 2 PM. Don't mess it up."
"Three: If she cries, don't panic. Just... figure it out."
Chima raised an eyebrow. "That's not very specific."
"That's all I've got. I'm late. Good luck!" Fatimah rushed out the door, leaving them standing in the middle of her living room.
Alice looked at the others. "So... we're babysitting?"
"Apparently," Chima muttered.
Naila was already looking for a place to sleep. "Where's the couch?"
Wony was examining her reflection. "I hope the baby doesn't drool on my outfit."
From the nursery, a small voice called out: "Mama? Mama?"
Everyone froze.
Alice whispered. "That's her. The baby."
Chima whispered back. "Why are we whispering?"
"I don't know! It felt right!"
Naila was already lying on the couch, closing her eyes. "Wake me when the baby is quiet."
"NAILA! YOU CAN'T SLEEP! WE'RE BABYSITTING!"
"I'm babysitting the couch. It's very comfortable."
***
They gathered outside the nursery door. Inside, Zabira was babbling happily to herself, completely unaware of the chaos about to enter her life.
"Okay," Chima said, taking charge. "We need to be calm. Gentle. Not scary."
Wony straightened her outfit. "I will project elegance. Babies like elegance."
Alice was practically vibrating. "I'LL BE THE FUN ONE!"
"Alice, you're already too loud."
"BABIES LIKE LOUD!"
"BABIES CRY AT LOUD!"
"TOM-AY-TO, TOM-AH-TO!"
"THAT'S NOT HOW THE PHRASE WORKS!"
Naila had somehow followed them without anyone noticing. She was leaning against the wall, eyes half-closed.
"Just open the door," she mumbled. "She's just a baby. How scary can she be?"
Chima took a deep breath and opened the door.
Zabira was sitting in her crib, playing with a stuffed bunny. She had big brown eyes, chubby cheeks, and a head full of dark curls.
She looked up at the four strangers standing in her doorway.
For a moment, there was silence.
Then Zabira's face crumpled.
"WAAAAAAAHHHH!"
The scream was ear-splitting. The kind of scream that could shatter glass. The kind of scream that made dogs in the neighborhood start howling.
Chima covered her ears. "WHY IS SHE SO LOUD?!"
Wony stepped back. "This is not elegant. This is the opposite of elegant!"
Alice tried to approach with a smile. "Hi, Zabira! I'm Alice! I'm your friend!"
Zabira screamed louder.
"OKAY, SHE DOESN'T LIKE ME!"
Naila was still leaning against the wall, unmoved. "Told you. Loud."
"NAILA! HELP!"
"I'm helping. I'm standing here. That takes effort."85Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPwl9080eyN
Alice was determined to win Zabira over. She grabbed a stuffed animal from the toy box and waved it around.
"Look, Zabira! It's a bunny! Just like yours! They could be friends!"
Zabira stopped crying for a moment. She stared at the bunny.
Alice grinned. "Yes! It's working!"
Zabira grabbed the stuffed animal from Alice's hand. Then she threw it across the room.
And started crying again.
"WELL, THAT BACKFIRED!"
Chima shook her head. "Alice, you're too intense. Let me try."
Chima approached the crib slowly, her hands up in a calming gesture.
"Hey, Zabira. I'm Chima. I'm not scary. See? I'm calm. I'm friendly."
Zabira looked at Chima's face.
Then she pointed at Chima and wailed even louder.
Chima stepped back, offended. "WHAT DID I DO?!"
"You have a fierce face," Wony observed. "Even when you try to be calm, you look angry."
"I DO NOT HAVE A FIERCE FACE!"
"You literally have resting fierce face."
"THAT'S NOT A THING!"85Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvTvEPiqpqr
Wony stepped forward with perfect posture. "Allow me. Babies appreciate elegance."
She approached the crib gracefully, extending a hand.
"Hello, little one. I am Wony. You may call me Won."
Zabira stopped crying. She stared at Wony with wide, curious eyes.
Wony smiled. "See? Elegance works."
Then Zabira reached out and grabbed Wony's perfectly styled hair and pulled.85Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9WfAa0TqyM
"OW! OW! OW! LET GO!"
Zabira giggled. A tiny, mischievous giggle.
Alice was laughing. "SHE LIKES YOUR HAIR!"
"SHE'S TRYING TO RIP IT OFF!"
Wony finally freed herself, smoothing down her ruined hair with shaking hands.
"My hair... my beautiful hair... it's ruined..."
"Your hair is fine," Chima said. "Your ego, however..."
"I WILL NEVER RECOVER FROM THIS!"85Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLslb3qqOg4
***
Some time later, Zabira was still crying. Everyone was exhausted. Naila hadn't moved from her position against the wall.
"Maybe she's just tired," Naila mumbled.
"WHAT?!"
"Babies cry when they're tired. Like me. Just... put her to sleep."
Chima stared at her. "You want us to put a crying baby to sleep?!"
"Yes. That's what babies do. They sleep. It's easy. I do it all the time."
"BUT YOU'RE NOT A BABY!"
"Close enough."
Wony picked up Zabira carefully, cradling her awkwardly. "Shh... it's okay... time to sleep..."
Zabira squirmed, wriggled, and kicked.
Wony almost dropped her. "I'M NOT BUILT FOR THIS!"
Alice took over, holding Zabira like a football. "Come on, baby! Sleep! It's nap time!"
Zabira screamed louder.
Chima grabbed Naila's arm. "You're the sleep expert! You do it!"
Naila opened one eye. "Too much effort."
"NAILA!"
"Fine, fine." Naila shuffled over to the crib. She looked at Zabira, who was now bright red from all the crying.
"Hey," Naila said softly. "You tired?"
Zabira stopped crying for a moment. She looked at Naila with watery eyes.
"I'm tired too," Naila continued, her voice slow and sleepy. "Always tired. Sleeping is nice. You should try it."
Zabira hiccuped.
"Just close your eyes. Take a nap. It's easy. I do it all the time."
Zabira blinked.
"See? It's working."
Everyone watched in amazement. Zabira's crying had stopped completely. She was staring at Naila with tired, heavy eyes.
Naila yawned. "You're not the only one who's loud. I snore. It's embarrassing. But I don't care."
Zabira's eyes started to droop.
"Sleep now," Naila murmured. "I'll be right here. Probably sleeping too."
Zabira's eyes closed.
Within seconds, she was fast asleep.
Everyone stood in stunned silence.
Alice whispered. "HOW DID YOU DO THAT?!"
Naila shrugged lazily. "I understand being too tired to function. She's just like me."
Chima stared at the sleeping baby. "Unbelievable. The laziest person in our group is the best with babies."
"I'm not lazy. I'm efficient."
"YOU JUST TALKED A BABY TO SLEEP!"
"Yes. Very efficient."
***
With Zabira asleep, the four of them finally relaxed. They sat in the living room, too exhausted to even argue.
"Okay," Chima said, leaning back. "That was... surprisingly hard."
Alice nodded. "Babies are exhausting! Way more exhausting than parties!"
Wony was still fixing her hair. "I need to invest in baby-proof hair ties."
Naila was already falling asleep on the couch. "Told you. Sleep is the answer."
"FOR EVERYTHING?"
"Yes. Always."
The baby monitor crackled. Zabira's voice came through: "Mama...?"
Everyone tensed.
Wony grabbed the monitor. "NO! SLEEP! SLEEP MORE!"
"SHHH!" Chima hissed. "You'll wake her!"
"You're also being loud!"
"YOU'RE BOTH BEING LOUD!"
Naila didn't move. "Relax. She'll fall back asleep. She's probably just dreaming."
"What do you know about babies?!"
"Everything. I'm basically a baby. Tired. Needy. Just want to sleep."
Chima stared at her. "That's... actually accurate."
The baby monitor went quiet. Zabira was asleep again.
Everyone let out a collective breath.
***
Hours Later.
The door opened. Fatimah walked in, looking tired but relieved.
"I'm back! How was everything?"
She stopped.
The living room was a disaster. Toys everywhere. A spilled bottle on the floor. Someone had dropped a stuffed animal in a glass of water.
And in the middle of it all, four people were completely passed out.
Chima was sprawled on the floor. Alice was draped over the armchair. Wony was slumped against the wall, still clutching the baby monitor. And Naila was, predictably, asleep on the couch.
Fatimah walked to the nursery.
Zabira was sleeping peacefully in her crib, clutching her stuffed bunny.
On the wall, someone had written in crayon:
"WE SURVIVED. - ALICE"
Fatimah smiled.
She walked back to the living room and gently nudged Chima.
Chima jolted awake. "ZABIRA?! IS SHE—"
"She's fine. She's asleep."
Chima collapsed back down. "Thank God."
Fatimah laughed softly. "You survived."
"Barely."
"I knew you could do it."
"FATIMAH. NEVER. AGAIN."
"Agreed."
***
Later that evening, they all sat around the dining table, exhausted but relieved. Zabira was in her high chair, happily eating pureed carrots.
Fatimah looked at her friends. "So... how did you do it?"
Alice started explaining. "Wony lost her hair, Chima scared her, I was too loud, and Naila talked her to sleep."
Fatimah blinked. "Naila talked her to sleep?"
Naila nodded sleepily. "I told her being tired was okay. And she understood."
"Unbelievable," Fatimah laughed. "My baby sister responds to laziness."
"Don't call me lazy. I'm 'relatable to children.'"
"Same thing."
"Rude."
Zabira looked at the group and smiled. A big, toothy grin.
Alice gasped. "SHE SMILED AT ME!"
"She smiled at everyone," Chima said.
"NO! SHE SMILED AT ME SPECIFICALLY! I'M THE FAVORITE!"
"You were the one she threw a bunny at."
"That's how she shows love!"
Wony sighed. "I need to go home and do a hair mask. My hair has suffered enough."
Naila was already half-asleep at the table. "Wake me when the baby needs another nap. I'm her sleep coach now."
"You're not her sleep coach."
"I am. I'm certified."
"Certified by who?!"
"By the universe."
Fatimah looked at her chaotic, ridiculous, utterly impossible friends.
And she smiled.85Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeVpnrFvsh3
and then Add to home screen.