The Check-Up
The doctor observes the daughter’s non-reaction to his entrance, to his voice, and the mother notices him noticing. The child is entranced by the blur of tile beneath her swinging feet. Heartbeat, blood pressure, ears, eyes, reflexes, temperature, weight and height, are all perfect, but he pauses for a final question: Does she ask for the potty? No. Even occasionally? No. Never. He is kindly, but the mother hears a sadness in his voice that alarms her, as he recommends an evaluation, hands her a card: Speech Pathologist.
At the Playground
A woman from the mommy group she’s never invited to join wears a T-shirt with Speech Pathologist emblazoned across the chest. She’s tall with plaid glasses. The mother begs, What is a speech pathologist? What does it mean? What’s a delay? How long? Can you explain? Can you recommend a place? Can you give me your number? Can you help me? She buttons her toddler’s collar and says, No.
The Evaluation
The two-way mirror makes the mother feel criminal. Does she play with dolls? No. (But she hides in the toy box.) Does she point? No. (But she loves moonlight.) Does she respond to her name? No. (But look at her golden hair.) Does she walk down stairs correctly? No. (She scoots down backward.) Can she stack the blocks? No. (But she laughs like crazy if you slap the butt of a raw chicken.) The score is 0 out of 100.
The Night After
The father thinks he hasn’t bought the right toy, so a giant plastic dollhouse crowds the living room. When the girl holds the mommy doll and inspects it, they sit motionless as two animals spying on prey. When she begins banging the brunette against the blue roof, he whispers, No. He tries to make her play like little girls on television, but they all end up scattered across the apartment and hysterical.
That Week
The cat has been sick. The vet says it will cost $2,000 to find out if a $6,000 surgery might work. They opt for the $25 shot of sleep-away. The mother doesn’t go. The father comes home with the empty kitty-carrier and the daughter repeats good boy over and over.
13 Years Later
In the neighborhood, the mother occasionally passes the tall woman with the plaid glasses. The mother smiles and nods, surprised by how much she still hates her.