The green racing car.

There is a child who lives across the street. He is bigger than I am but from time to time he's crossing and comes to play. He plays football in the street with my brother and with other children. I'm only watching, they don't take me in their teams because I am too little to play with them. I would like to play, though, and I ask him sometimes and he lets me play in his team. Nobody would pass me the ball, because I am not very good. I am little and the ball is too big for me. And I can't run very fast. But he always takes me in his team, and he's passing me the ball and he stays near me to protect me from the other team. Most of the times we lose, but he still takes me in his team. But when we win, we are both very happy. One time I was kicked very hard with the ball and I fell down and it hurt. He came to help me and then took me home and said I would be fine. On the way home he gave me an entire packet of chewing gum which smells nice like watermelon and he told me it was all for me, and nobody else needed to know, like a big secret. My parents don't let me chew gum, they say I have little children teeth and it's not good for me. When I grow up I would like to be a big football player. And I will always take my friend in my team and share all my candy with him.

Some time ago I was a sick. I was coughing and when I drank cold water it hurt. After some days, mommy said we would go to the hospital. I did not know what it was, I had not been before to a hospital. But when we went, I did not like it there. It smelled bad, it was not nice. A lady in a white coat came to me and stung me with a needle. I cried because it hurt and I was scared, but the lady smiled at me and said I would be better. My mommy told me the lady was a doctor and she gave me an injection to stop me from being sick. We went back home and I did not cough after that. I am happy that I am not sick anymore, I have not been coughing after that. I can drink cold water now and I can even have ice-cream when daddy buys it. We are happy. My friend from across the street visits me again from time to time and we play together. I think he is happy for me, too.

After more days my mommy took me to the hospital again. Another lady in white coat put me on a table and looked at me and she gave me another of those injections. Then she told my mother the first needle had not been very clean and I could be still sick. I don't understand why she hurt my arm again with the injection, I am not sick. I am not coughing now.

When we went home my friend from across the street came to play with me and my brother, and he brought me a toy. I don't have many toys, and they are not very nice. He lets me play with his. Sometimes he lets me keep them when he goes back home. This time he brought me a green racing car. I had seen him play with it before, it is his best toy. If you press your hand on it and then you take your hand off, the wheels spin and the car drives by itself. I am very happy that he let me keep the race car, I like it so much. I am not very strong and I have to press hard with two hands to make it run, but it is nice when I get to make it drive by itself. Maybe when I am big my daddy will buy me a green racing car and I will go racing with my friend. But I think my daddy is upset with me now. He doesn't buy me ice-cream anymore. Still, I am happy to I play with my friend.

My mommy says I am not feeling very well and from time to time we have to go to the hospital again. They did not give me an injection this time, they gave me some candy. But I do not like this candy, it is not sweet and it smells bad, like the hospital. I don't like these candy, the injections and the hospital. I wish they didn't say I was sick and make me come here, because I am not coughing anymore.
When I go home from the hospital I like to play with my brother and my friend. Other children don't play with us anymore, they do not even play football with my brother and I think they are being mean to us now. They are saying words which upset my brother and my friend, but I don't understand what they are. And I don't have the courage to ask them what they mean. Luckily my friend is still nice and brings even more toys and he still likes to play with us. He visits me almost every day now. He likes to play with me, although he does not seem very happy sometimes when we play together. Maybe it is because the other children do not want to play football with him anymore. But I am happy that he stays with me.

One day my tummy was hurting, and mommy took me quickly to the hospital again and she said we had to stay there the whole night. Another lady doctor gave me another injection. Mommy is crying, I think she does not like it here. They gave me a big bed that is nice, but I would like to go home and sleep in my little bed. My green car is at home, with the other toys. I know my brother will play with it, I hope he does not break it until I come back, he is not very careful with toys that are not his. I don't like it here, there aren't any toys. And other people in white coats come to look at me, they are not very polite. They don't give me injections, they just look at me and give me more of that candy that I don't like. I am starting to get a little scared. My mommy says I got sick from the injection, but then why would she bring me here again?

I am sicker now, my tummy hurts all the time and I sleep more nights at the hospital than at home. One time my mommy says my friend cannot visit me, but she brought me some toys. I was very happy, in the bag I saw the green racing from him. The car does not drive in the bed, it is too soft when I press it down it my hands. And I am too little to get out of bed alone. But I am happy to have the car, I keep it with me and I hide it under the pillow when I sleep. I miss my friend, I would like to see him and play with him. And I bet he could make the car drive in the bed, too. I told mommy I would like to go home and play just a little, and then I can come back. She said I couldn't and she cried.
One evening I was in my bed and I could not sleep when I heard a lady in a white coat telling my mommy that I am not going back home anymore. My mommy did not say anything and she started to cry again. I am crying, too. I don't want to stay, I don't like it here. In the morning mommy said she had to go home to take care of my brother and that the doctors would take care of me here until she comes back. I asked her to take me with her and she said I had to stay in the hospital. She cried again, and I did not ask anymore. They never tell me things. Maybe because I am too little and I could not understand. But it's not nice, I would like to know what they will do to me and why I can't go home.

I am alone in the hospital now. The doctors come to look at me and mommy comes to visit me but she says nobody else can come and play with me. There is a telly in the room, but it doesn't have cartoons. There are people talking all day but I don't understand them, either. I am alone in the room but they won't let me watch what I like. There are not many things to do, it is boring here for a little child. When nobody is with me I think of my friend from across the street. I wonder if he will come to us to take his toys back. And I hope he will not be upset because I kept his green racing car. When they let me go home I will go and give it back to him. It's what friends do.