PROLOGUE:
BEDTIME STORIES

Kailey enjoyed bedtime the most. She loved slipping into her comfortable pajamas, being brought to her room by her Uncle, tucked into her fluffy bed, being given warm chocolate milk and then a kiss before she goes to sleep. But what she loves the most is being told her bedtime stories. Her mommy said that listening to stories was good for her. Her great grandmother used to tell her mommy stories when she was little like her and that she wouldn't be where she was without them. She didn't understand what she meant by that, all she knew was that she loved hearing them, especially when her Uncle was the one to do the storytelling.

He always told her happy, entertaining stories. Most of the time, he would accompany the narration with acting, including her stuffed animals in an impromptu play and occasionally he would turn that into a musical by breaking into song. The best stories she heard from him were those about her mommy, daddy and himself before she was born. He would try to get her interested in fairytales and the like, figuring it to be age appropriate but she would insist on those not-so-happily-ever-after stories instead. She'd match it with a pleading look to rival his own and he couln't very well deny her anything with that.

Tonight was no different than the others before. He had tucked her in, a mug filled with chocolate-milk already in her hands. She was looking expectantly at him, waiting for the story. He smiled, brushing her hair off of her face, thinking to himself how much she looked like her mother. The ache that followed this thought quelled only by his happiness from being around her. He caugt a glimpse of her pout and he knew he spaced out on her.

"Sorry Kailey. Where was I again?"

"You were gonna tell me about my mommy and daddy."

He chuckled, knowing that it was a given already topic already. "Okay, what do you want to hear about them Princess?"

"Mm... How about how mommy and daddy got together?"

His smile fell at this. He knew this was coming. He was always thankful she never asked him about this but he knew sooner or later she would. It wasn't particularly a subject he was comfortable with. It had been a couple of years since then, but the memory of what had transpired was still fresh on his mind. He didn't know if he could relieve it with her.

"Wanna ask for another story Princess? Finishing that could take a while, your mom said that I gotta get you in bed by 8:30 and it's already nearing 8." He suggested hoping she would concede.

"Nope." She shook her head and handed him the now empty mug. She turned away from him and arranged her pillows against the headboard which was his usual signal for him to begin his story.

He sighed, setting down the mug on the bedside table and brought up the sheets over her tiny frame. He climbed on to the bed and placed himself next to her, contemplating how to begin it. He was brought out of reverie when he felt a gentle nudge to his side.

"You're doing it again, Uncle." She said, a look of displeasure evident in her features, arms crossed over her chest and he could sworn he was looking at her mother, being at the receiving end of those glares in the past.

"Sorry Princess. Was just trying to think..." He explained, running his fingers run through her locks as his eyes scanned over the room. His gaze rested on the MP3 dock, and immediately an idea hatched in his mind. He scooted off of the bed and made his way to the bookcase where it was located. He extracted his iPod from his pocket and connected it to the dock. He fiddled with the menu, trying to locate the playlist he had known by heart for years now. When finally saw it, he took the remote and went back to his place on the bed. Once settled, he turned to face Kailey again, grinning down at her, patting himself on the back for a brilliant idea. "So."

"So..?" She mimicked him, looking curiously at the remote. "Whatcha doing with the remote?"

He didn't respond but instead pointed the remote at the dock to begin playing the first track.