Happy Mini Doll Monday! Are you ready to learn more about Emma? Why her necklace is so special to her, if the other mini’s ever warm up to her, and if she ever sees Emelie soon? Well, stay tuned… ;)

~Told in the POV of Emma~

IMG_0001Mealtimes. Now one of my least favorite parts of the day. Everyone gathers around and talks and eats and looks so happy together – except me.

IMG_0002I’m the awkward one. I feel left out and scared and I wish all the time I was with Emelie, my owner, but I hadn’t seen her since Christmas!

IMG_0004Today, breakfast was scrambled eggs – again. Not that I’m complaining. In the AG Mini Doll Orphanage, you learn to be very, very grateful for what you have. But eggs aren’t my favorite thing in the world – in fact, I rather dislike them – but everybody here LOVES them.

IMG_0006They excitedly reach for seconds – and give me a mighty big second helping of it, too. I graciously say thank you and eat it all to be polite, but I kindly decline when they offer thirds – if there’s that much.

IMG_0007Breakfast was over soon, and it was Jessa’s turn to clear the dishes. The rest of us help fold up the blanket we eat on.

IMG_0009“Phew! This blanket is big and heavy, isn’t it, Emma?” Molly-Anne told me as we folded the last part together. She was trying to start up a nice conversation – like always – but it didn’t work. I gave a curtesy smile and barely nodded my head. This blanket wasn’t big or heavy at all. Or perhaps I was just stronger – at the orphanage, I was on trash duty, and trash bags are heavy.

IMG_0010I sat down on the bed I was sleeping on until mine arrived, and dreaded more conversation, Nobody looked to be going anywhere, which usuallly happened after we ate. Molly-Ann and Jocelyn, who were best friends, would usually go off and play together, and Jessa would most likely sit and quietly read. She was somewhat quiet, like me, and not extraordinarily talkative like the rest. She usually let me alone, which was a relief.

But Celina was a mystery all in herself. I never knew where she went, or what she did, and I didn’t think she liked me very much at all.

“Hey Emma,” She spoke up all of the sudden. When she didn’t continue, I replied, “Yes?”

“It’s time you learned your way around. Follow me. It’s time for a tour.”

I would’ve politely declined, like always, and just kept to myself writing in a journal that had been given to me or letter back to my friend Penny, at the orphanage, but it looked like Celina wasn’t giving me a choice. I followed her.

IMG_0015“This is how we get down to the ground,” Celina told me. “You better have good arm strength, otherwise you’ll fall.” She said it as if she didn’t care, and almost hoped that I would fall!

Luckily for me, what she didn’t know, I had pretty great arm strength indeed. Celina huffed and puffed as she climped down the rope to one floor below.

IMG_0016“This,” She huffed, “Is the third – floor. It’s – very – unorganized and full of – papers,” She puffed, breathing hard as she landed.

IMG_0017“Let go of the rope and walk to the other side.”

IMG_0018“Then jump down onto this flag pole. Better have good aim!”

IMG_0019“Manouver yourself – or flip over – to the other side, and let… GO!”

IMG_0020“OOF! You’ll land safely – hopefully – on Chloe’s bed. Now come on and give it a try. Hurry, we don’t have all day to give you a tour.”

IMG_0022“Okay,” I murmered, sliding effortlessly and gracefully down the rope and to the third floor. I saw Celina gawk at me form the corner of my eye. She crossed her arms and had a look of jealousy on her face.

IMG_0023I landed on a book on top of some messy papers and walked across them to the other side.

IMG_0025I looked down. The flag pole looked so far away – I could hold on to it, I was sure, but what if I missed it and fell? What if I didn’t have a good aim?

IMG_0026Before I knew what was happening, I jumped down.

In a blur, I thought I was going to die. My hair flew in my face and I got a yucky mouthful of it. Light bounced off my cross necklace and blinded my view – where was I going? Where was the flagpole? I’m going to fall! I’m going to die! I panicked.

All of the sudden, my fingertips touched something splitery and hard. I grasped hard around it, and realized I was safely hanging from the flag pole! I took a deep breath and pulled myself up. Celina’s jaw dropped at my effortless move. I front-flipped over.

IMG_0055I let go and turned so I’d land on my back.

IMG_0056“Woah!” I gasped as I hit the bed. Not the most comfortable landing, but I did it.

Celina was glaring at me.”Well, hurry up! Let’s go!” She barked. I smoothed down my messy hair, reached in my ribbon sash for a hair elastic I always keep on me, and pulled my hair back into a ponytail. Who knows what else we might encounter?

IMG_0057I can’t believe I just flipped off of a flag pole, I smiled to myself, sliding off the bed and following Celina’s lead. Golly, do I have something exciting to tell Penny about in my next letter!

IMG_0059I reached up to straighten my cross necklace, and my heart skipped a beat.

It wasn’t there.

IMG_0061“Celina!” I cried. “Help me – I have to find my cross necklace. It must have come off when I was flipping off the flagpole!”

IMG_0062Celina just rolled her eyes. “Sounds like a personal problem to me.”

IMG_0063“Over here we have the vast sea of pinkness, aka a big bedspread. If you ever want to have some fun – which, I doubt, you ever do – this is fun to roll around on.” She continued with the tour. Her rude words and not wanting to help me find my precious necklace stung, but I couldn’t focus on that. I opened my mouth to ask her if I could go look for it, but she had already moved on to the next thing.

IMG_0064“Over here-” she pulled herself up onto a drawer, “Is the drawer with the books on it.”

IMG_0065“I see my book! Maybe I should read it… There’s also a radio, a piggy bank, and an November 2015 calendar. We need to put our new one up soon so we can-“

IMG_0066“Celina,” I interrupted, trying to be as polite as possible. “I need to find my necklace. Did you happen to see where it fell when I jumped onto the bed?”

Celina broke into a smirk. “Wouldn’t you love to know?” She answered my question with a question. “Why is your necklace to special to you, anyways, that you didn’t even want the necklace we made for you? Don’t you want anything we offer you?”

I felt hot tears well up, but I couldn’t focus on her smiting words. I had to find my necklace.

“My necklace,” I began, trying to control my voice and fight back tears, “was given to me by my best friend, Penny. She lived at the orphanage with me. Penny was a mini Elizabeth doll. She was so sweet and kind to everyone there, even when we weren’t sure any one would ever adopt us.” I smiled, remebering Penny’s kind words and sparkling, happy eyes. “She found this cross pendadnt thrown on ground on the backyard of the orphanage one day during free time. She found it, and said, ‘How could anyone throw away this beautiful cross?’ She asked around if anyone had lost it, but none of the girls had. She cleaned it up until it sparkled and shone like new. The next day, I was told I was being adopted!
I was so happy – but I was going to miss Penny. She strung the cross on a piece of string and tied it around my neck. ‘This is for you,’ She told me, holding my hand.”

I sniffed, not sure if I could continue. I swallowed the rising lump in my throat.

“‘Wear it always, so we can think of each other. I wish you good luck at your new home, Emma. I love you.'”

Celina looked down, as if she didn’t know what to say. Finally she looked up. “Then go find it!” She barked, turning away and putting her nose deep into her meet book.

IMG_0067I swiped my wet eyes and looked under some beds.

IMG_0069I scoured between beds.

IMG_0070I even checked all the slippers to see if my necklace had fallen into one!

IMG_0071I stood up, just about ready to have a good cry. All of the sudden, I heard a ferocious noise behind me! I jumped, startled.

IMG_0074I turned to see what had made the sound.

IMG_0075I gasped. A huge DOG was standing right there!

“No,” I whimpered, shaking my head. It couldn’t be.

It had my necklace!

IMG_0076It started walking towards me. I backed up, like you would if you encuntered a snake, until my back hit the bed behind me hard. I was trapped!

You see, I have had a fear of dogs ever since a wild stray escaped from the dog pound and made its way to the orphanage. It was big and scary and it barked so loud it hurt my ears. Penny coaxed me through it, and while I never encountered another dog, I said I was afraid of dogs.

And this one was getting closer… and closer… and closer!

“Celina! Help me!” I screamed. Was the dog going to attack? Lunge? Bite? Or even worse… eat my necklace? Or me?!

IMG_0078But Celina ignored me, loudly flipping a page in her book.

IMG_0079As the beast crepy nearer, I turned my head and squeezed shut my eyes. This is the end! I realized. This dog is going to eat me alive. I’m going to die!

IMG_0080My eyes flew open as I felt a soft, gentle nudge on my shoulder. I slowly turned my head to look.

IMG_0082I wanted to laugh out loud for being so silly!

IMG_0085Look at this sweet little face! The puppy smiled at me. It’s eyes were like the mean dog – but I realized they weren’t mean, they were a little curious. Like the mean dog had been… it may have been a wild stray, but it was curious about the world but also frightened. I shouldn’t have beens cared when it barked about.

IMG_0083The puppy nudged my cross necklace into my hands, and my heart instanly melted.

Well, it stayed un-melted long enough to have a love for animals birthed into it.

IMG_0086I hugged the sweet little puppy. “Oh, thank you, you kind little thing,” I whispered. “Thank you so much!”

I read her name tag. Coconut. “What a good name,” I told her as I petted her soft, white, coconut-colored fur.

IMG_0087When Celina was done, Coconut and I grew so accustomed to each other, she let me ride her. I could even sorta understand what she was saying – just by looking into her sweet eyes and paying attention to her body language. Even the tone of her barks meant different things – playful and excited, annoyed, curious, or urgent, like it had been when she found my cross necklace, somehow knowing it was important to me!

The look of pure envy was written all over Celina’s face. “Why are you letting her ride you, Coco?” She asked the puppy, annoyed. “I’ve know you for much longer and yet you never let me ride very much!”

IMG_0088“Come one,” She barked just as loudly as Coconut. “The tour is DONE. And I still have to show you how to get back up.”

IMG_0089I slipped off of Coconut and followed her. I was relieved to have my cross necklace back and happy to have made a furry friend, but I still felt sad that Celina didn’t like me.

What can I do to ease the tension between us? Any ideas? Comment below with your suggestions. I’ll pick one, and do it. The next Mini Doll Monday, I will show you all what I did!

Love,

Emma