Dear Diary,
There has been a lot of commotion in Phoenix over the past couple of days. Other resisters came, bringing a baby boy with them. A baby boy! They are so precious now. Tate and Gabe bought him. It’s hard for me to wrap my head around the idea: “buying” children. I could not go over at first, I did not believe it. I think of what his mother must be feeling about her son being lost, and it hits too close to home. So I have been listening to all the women instead. They can not stop going on and on about how human he looks. Talking about his five fingers, his five perfect toes. There are no tentacles and he puts everything in his mouth. I smiled at this and said nothing;, the way they talk about him reminds me so much of my little boy, he was always such a curious thing.
Today, I made my way over to Gabe and Tate’s. I couldn’t believe how anxious I was. My hands were shaking and I was sweating. All I could think of was my baby boy. And there he was sitting on the floor as I pushed open the door. He was as perfect as they said he was, nothing was “wrong” with him. So like my son, it sent my heart pounding. Tears poured down my face. This little boy was everything we couldn’t have, everything we gave up. Oh, how much Phoenix was going to change because of him. How things had already changed; I had heard about Mateo fighting the resisters. Now we have guns. God only knew what people in Phoenix were going to do with those guns.
He noticed me standing in the doorway. Feeling a little foolish, I sat down next to him.
“Well, hello there,” I said.
And then I could not believe it. He opened his mouth and said, “Hello. My name’s Akin. Who are you? I’m sorry I should have said something sooner. Most people are upset when they know I can talk.”
I was shocked, although I shouldn’t have been. It was just so uncanny to hear him talk so clearly. He was not my son. I could never have another son. All this stealing, pointless.