#baby rachel and young mama sera bonding

[rachelstwomoms]

Earrings For Rachel

This story takes place in my “Childhood Friends AU” universe, but several years earlier. If you’re like me and love the idea of Sera and little Rachel going around LA like the adorable mother-daughter pair that they are, this one’s for you.

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The day that Rachel Amber’s been waiting for is finally, finally here. The child has an extra bounce in her step as she walks hand-in-hand with her mother down the streets of Los Angeles. They pass bakeries and bookstores and a bunch of other shops that, on this sunny spring afternoon, are all just a blur. Today, Rachel has only one destination on her mind.

From the days when she was a tiny baby who hadn’t even learned to walk, Rachel’s been fascinated with jewelry and pretty little accessories. Necklaces. Bracelets. Her very first piece of jewelry was a special bracelet that her mother gave her right after she was born. Although Rachel doesn’t have memories from that early in her life, Rose has told her before that she’s never taken it off, not even in the bath. Rachel doesn’t want to take it off, anyway. It reminds her of her mother. Even when she doesn’t get to see Sera it makes her feel a bit like she’s there.

If Rachel begged long enough, sometimes Rose would let her wear some of her jewelry. There was one particular necklace in Rose’s jewelry box that Rachel really liked, with a thin, silver chain and a star-shaped pendant. She asked her stepmother if she could wear it so many times that one day Rose just let her have it. Rachel wore that necklace every day until an unfortunate incident at preschool where it accidentally got flushed down the toilet. Naturally, Rachel flipped out and Rose was called to the school to come and pick her up early after three different teachers all failed to calm her down.

Luckily for her parents, Rachel got over it quickly. All Rose had to do was plop Rachel onto the couch with her favorite snack and stick The Little Mermaid into the VCR and she was fine. Unfortunately, the movie turned out to be both a blessing and a curse. Even though her daughter’s watched this movie a hundred times before, this time Rachel gets to the part of the movie where Ariel becomes human and is getting ready to have dinner with the prince and is utterly captivated by the mermaid’s new pearl earrings. Ever since then, that’s all Rachel’s been talking about. Earrings, earrings, earrings. Her parents are well aware that no fancy necklace nor bracelet could distract Rachel from her current obsession over earrings.

Gone are the days when Rachel’s love for the accessory could be appeased with little plastic clip-ons and magnetic studs. She’s getting older. Wiser. Now she knows that the earrings that Rose and Daddy buy her aren’t real. And Rachel’s ready for the real deal. She may or may not have thrown a good tantrum or two (or three or ten) in order to get her point across. Her birthday’s coming up and, this year, there’s only one thing that she wants: to get her ears pierced.

At first, James and Rose weren’t too keen on the idea. They both thought that their daughter was still too young. A big part of the reason why they ended up giving in, other than the tantrums, of course, was because Sera helped convince them. The young mother opened with the obvious, stating that plenty of girl Rachel’s age have their ears pierced. Sera took the time to explain that the safest option would be to take Rachel to a licensed body piercer, and that the tattoo parlor where she’s gone to get her own tattoos done also does piercings. Sera reassured them that it’s a reputable shop and that she trusts the staff. One of the employees who does piercings also happens to be one of her closest friends, so she would feel completely comfortable letting her pierce their daughter’s ears. James and Rose eventually got on board and gave Sera permission to take Rachel to have it done.

And today’s the big day.

As mother and daughter approach the end of the block, Sera suddenly comes to a stop in front of one of the shops and Rachel squeezes her hand excitedly.

“Mommy, is this the place?”

The first ten times Rachel asked, Sera’s answer had been no. This time, however, they’ve actually reached their destination. “Yeah, Baby, we’re here.”

Rachel tilts her head back and looks up at the gothic-style lettering of the sign above the door. Right in the middle, there’s a skull and crossbones with a pirate sword going through the top of its head and coming out of its mouth. Rachel can’t exactly read yet, but she does know her ABCs and their sounds, so she spends a second trying to make out what the sign says.

But these letters don’t look like the ones she knows. They’re shaped differently, and Rachel finds herself getting frustrated trying to decipher them. Before she can ask, though, Sera’s pulling the door open and leading her inside.

It’s rather dark inside the shop. Black walls are covered from top to bottom with framed tattoo designs and photographs of past customers. The reception area is dim and eerie, front desk illuminated by a glowing red neon welcome sign. On the wall behind the desk is another skull and crossbones that match the sign outside. Upon hearing the door open, a woman with four buns in her hair comes out from the back of the shop to greet her guests, breaking into a toothy grin when she recognizes who it is.

“Sera! It’s great to see you again!” She comes over and greets Rachel’s mother with a long hug. Her arms and neck are covered in tattoos and there’s a gold ring in her nose. She leans over to look at Rachel, smile growing even wider. When she speaks again, Rachel notices that she even has a piercing on her tongue. “You must be my client, Miss Rachel.”

Rachel puffs out her chest and beams upon being addressed in such a grown-up sounding way.

The woman reaches out to shake Rachel’s hand and introduces herself. “My name’s Dani. I’m going to pierce your ears today. Is that okay?”

Rachel’s wearing the biggest, happiest smile Sera’s ever seen. Her daughter gleefully takes Dani’s hand and walks with her to the back of the shop. Sera follows behind them, letting out a sigh of relief. Part of her had been slightly worried that Rachel might be scared, either by the interior of the shop and its whole skull motif, or when it was actually time for her to sit down and have her piercings done, but her daughter is all smiles as she chats with Dani and climbs fearlessly into the black leather chair.  

“I get to have real earrings because I’m big now,” Rachel proudly tells Dani.  

“Yeah?” Dani washes her hands and pulls on a fresh pair of rubber gloves. “How old are you?”

Rachel holds up all the fingers on one hand. “Five!”

Sera raises an eyebrow and chuckles. “No, Dawn, not yet. Almost. ” Her daughter erupts into amused giggles. Sera explains. “She’ll be five in July.”

“And then I’ll get to go to kindergarten. Right, Mommy?”

“That’s right. This fall.”

“Wow. School, huh?” Dani hands Rachel a laminated card showing their selection of starter studs. “Well, Miss Rachel, are you ready to choose your very first pair of earrings?”

Rachel’s eyes light up. She takes a second to admire all the different kinds, but it doesn’t take her long to select a pair for herself. She points to the picture of some simple white pearls. “These look just like Mommy’s!” She turns her head and looks at Sera. “Mommy, can I see?”

Sera complies and tucks one side of her hair behind her ear. Both Rachel and Dani look and, sure enough, the earrings are almost identical.

Dani lets out a small laugh. “Are those the ones you want?”

“Yeah!” Rachel bounces a little in the chair.

“Sera, I see you’ve got a ‘mini-me’ on your hands.” Dani looks at Sera and grins.

“Yeah, she’s going through her ‘just like Mommy’ phase.” The young mother finds it endearing how much her daughter tries to imitate her lately. Sera smiles lovingly at Rachel. “Aren’t you, Baby?”

Looking absolutely pleased with herself, Rachel giggles again.

“I figured it was best to get this done now,” says Sera, tucking Rachel’s hair behind her ears and taking one last look at the unpierced skin. “She’s been asking for E-A-R-R-I-N-G-S for her B-I-R-T-H-D-A-Y, so…” Trailing off, she shares a knowing look with Dani. “You know, so they have time to heal before then.”

“Yeah, I get you.”

Dani pulls a wheeled tray of tools over to the chair. She shows each one to Rachel, tells her what it’s called, and explains exactly what she’s going to do with it. First, she cleans Rachel’s ears with a liquid solution and a small piece of cloth, earning more laughs from the clearly ticklish child. Dani then marks a tiny dot on each of Rachel’s earlobes where the piercing will be and has Sera take a look. Once she has both Sera’s and Rachel’s approval, Dani takes one of the tools from the tray and measures the marks just to make sure that they’re even on both sides.

Everything looks good.

“Okay, Miss Rachel, are you ready?” asks Dani, holding up the piercing needle. “Which ear do you want done first?” Rachel points to her left ear, so Dani moves to that side of the chair. “You’re doing awesome, you know that? I’ve had some grown-ups come in here before who were nowhere near as calm and brave as you.”

Rachel enjoys the praise. “I’m not scared.”

“You are the coolest kid I’ve met,” Dani says, gently turning Rachel’s head to the opposite side. “I’m going to pierce your ear now, okay? You might feel a teensy-weensy pinch.”

Rachel holds still and tries not to move her head, just like Dani tells her. Dani counts down from three and then sticks the needle through. From her seat across the room, Sera watches her daughter’s expression change as the piercing needle comes back out and Dani puts the first earring in place. There’s a shocked, confused look in Rachel’s eyes and her mouth is twisted into a tight grimace. Discomfort is written all over her face. Sera holds her breath and hopes that her daughter doesn’t have a meltdown. They’re already halfway through and can’t back out now.

Rachel looks over and searches her mother’s face for her reaction, so Sera makes sure to mask all traces of concern behind a reassuring smile and lots of praise.

“You doing okay?” Dani goes to put the back of the earring on to secure it in place, but Rachel pulls away at her touch. Sera jumps up from her seat and goes over to try and soothe her daughter before the situation has time to escalate.

“It’s okay. Dani’s just going to put the back on so it won’t fall out.” Sera holds Rachel’s hand and strokes her hair. “You’re such a brave girl. I’m so proud of you.”

While Rachel’s distracted, Dani slips on the earring back and then hands Sera a handheld mirror. Sera holds it up so she and Rachel can look in it together. “Oh, Dawn, look at your earring! It’s so pretty.”

Sera can tell from her daughter’s face that she’s dangerously close to crying. Rachel’s eyes are shiny with tears but she looks curiously into the mirror.

“Do you like it?”

Rachel nods and the motion causes two tears to roll slowly down her cheeks.

“You’re okay, Baby.” Placing the mirror on the chair, Sera takes Rachel’s other hand as well and gives both a comforting squeeze. “You’re so brave.”

Dani moves to the other side of the chair and a flash of panic appears on Rachel’s face. She’s no fool. She knows what’s coming now and isn’t looking forward to it one bit.

“Just one more and then we’re done!” Sera attempts to distract Rachel. “We can go get smoothies! What kind do you want?”

Rachel flinches when Dani touches her other ear. Her voice is wavery. “M-mango… and strawberry…”

“Alright, Miss Rachel, I’m going to pierce your other ear. Are you ready?” Compared to earlier, Dani’s tone much gentler. It’s clear that she doesn’t want to upset the four-year-old further. Rachel chokes out a tiny sob and nods her head yes , but her facial expression and body language say otherwise. “Would you feel better if you sat in Mommy’s lap for this one?”

Rachel nods again, pulling her hands from her mother’s and lifting her arms up. Sera lifts Rachel up and takes her place in the chair before placing her in her lap. Dani starts the countdown again and then pierces Rachel’s other ear, earning a stifled, squeaky cry of pain from the child. Once Dani sticks the earring back on that second earring, she holds her empty hands up in front of Rachel to show her that she’s finished. “That’s it! You’re all done.”

Wiggling in her mother’s lap, Rachel turns her body around and clings to Sera’s neck. Instinctively, Sera’s arms wrap around Rachel and she spends a moment comforting her, telling her how well she did, and reassuring her that she’s going to be fine. To everyone’s relief, Rachel only cries for a short minute before Sera coaxes her to look in the mirror again.

“Oh, Baby, look! You look so big. They look just like Mommy’s.” Sera tucks her own hair behind her ears and carefully brushes Rachel’s out of the way so they can compare earrings. “We’re matching now.”

Snuffling, Rachel turns her head to look. Her lips curl into a small smile when she sees her new, real earrings. Sera hands her the mirror so her daughter can continue to admire her ears while freeing up her own hands. She wipes Rachel’s tears away with her fingertips. “You really did so good. It ended up hurting a little but, huh?”

“Yeah…” Rachel pouts but still doesn’t take her eyes away from her reflection. “Can we go now?”

“Dani’s going to show us how to take care of your ears while they’re healing, but then we’re all done. Are you ready for your mango strawberry smoothie?”

Remembering the promise of her favorite fruity treat, Rachel perks up. She listens attentively during Dani’s explanation about the importance of keeping her ears clean and nods when asked if she understands. When Dani asks her to promise not to touch her ears or take out her earrings until Mommy says it’s okay, Rachel promises. But even Dani, despite only having known Rachel for a few minutes, notices a big change in the child’s demeanor compared to when she and Sera first arrived. Rachel’s a lot more quiet and subdued, and the piercer can’t help but feel a little guilty.

When it’s time to leave, Sera has to pry Rachel off of her when they reach the front desk so she can pay. Even once Rachel’s standing on her own again, she stays close to Sera, one arm around her mother’s legs.

Dani comes around the side of the desk so she can send Sera and Rachel off.

“Dawn, can you say ‘thank you’ to Dani?” Sera asks.

Rachel looks up at Dani from her spot pressed tightly against Sera’s side. “Thank you.”

Dani crouches down and smiles at her little client. “You did so awesome today. Can I get one last peek at those gorgeous ears of yours?” Taking a step out from behind Sera, Rachel pushes her hair behind her back to show off her earrings and Dani gasps. “Whoa! Sera, is that you? I could’ve sworn you were taller! Did you shrink?”

An amused smile creeps its way onto Rachel’s face. Shaking her head, she points up at her mother. “No, Mommy’s right here.”

Dani looks up at Sera, then back to Rachel, then switches back and forth between them a few times. “No way, there are two Seras? Since when?”

“No!” Rachel’s voice rises in pitch as she gets the giggles. “That’s Mommy! I’m Rachel!”

Dani shakes her head. “No. No way. I met Rachel today and she was just a little girl. And you’re practically a grown-up lady. Are you really Rachel?”

By now, Rachel’s laughing uncontrollably and she goes up close to Dani’s face and leans in. “It’s me! It’s Rachel!”

Dani reaches out and tickles the girl’s sides, causing her to shriek and burst into hysterics. “Ah, all right. I guess you do sound a little like Rachel. I didn’t recognize you because now you look just like your Mommy. You could be twins.”

“Mommy!” Rachel hops over to Sera excitedly. “Am I your twin now?”

Sera shoots Dani a grateful smile, then chuckles and puts a hand on her daughter’s head. “Do you think Daddy and Rose will be able to tell us apart?”

Rachel hums, suddenly thinking seriously about the situation. “Mommy, you have to wear a jacket so they can’t see your tattoos. Then we can trick them!” This earns a good laugh from the adults in the room. “Or maybe I can get a tattoo.”

Dani snorts.

Sera shakes her head, still laughing. “Sorry, Baby. No tattoos.”

“What about when I’m bigger?”

“When you’re much, much bigger.”

Rachel smiles cheekily. “Like when I’m eight?”

“Try eighteen.”

The door to the tattoo parlor opens, and in walks another customer. With Rachel back to her usual self, Sera knows that the time has come to bid farewell to Dani. Before they leave, Rachel throws her arms around her new friend and gives her a big hug. Dani wishes Rachel well in kindergarten and waves goodbye, only stopping once Sera and Rachel are completely out of sight. Back on the streets again, the young mother and her young daughter head to their next stop, the smoothie shop.

After walking a couple blocks in comfortable quiet, Rachel’s voice suddenly breaks the silence. “Mommy?”

“Yeah?”

“When I’m eighteen,” Rachel recalls the tattoo conversation from earlier, “will you still be my mommy?”

“Always, Baby.”

Satisfied with this answer, she smiles and squeezes Sera’s hand tighter. At four years old, Rachel Amber doesn’t really understand the concept of time. She’s old enough to know that a day means morning, afternoon and night. She knows that going to sleep makes one day end and the next day begin. But she can’t yet comprehend exactly how long a day is, or how many days are in a year, or just how many more birthdays she has until she’s eighteen.

They come to a stop at a crosswalk, and, while they wait for the light to change, Rachel catches a glimpse of her reflection in the window of the shop on the corner. Her new earrings glisten in the afternoon sunshine.  

At four years old, Rachel is sure of one thing, though.  

When she grows up, she wants to be just like her mommy.