Selina panicked a little. “Blood?” she asked, hoping that she didn’t terrify Barbara with her tone.
“Yes… blood…” Barbara glanced at her bed, then tucked her head again. “Lots of blood. I’m bleeding.”
Selina felt her heart leap into her throat. She shook Barbara gently. Selina inspected her closely but could see no cuts or injuries anywhere on her body.
“What do you mean, Barbara? Where’s the blood? Are you hurt? Did something happen to you? I can’t see any bleeding.” Selina felt a strong urge to bolt out of the bedroom in search of Morgan. She controlled herself, wanting to understand what was going on with Barbara.
“From… from down there…” Barbara pointed.
Selina followed her hand and saw that Barbara was pointing toward her crotch area. Selina looked confused until it finally hit her like a brick on the head. The sudden understanding brought about another sense of relief, but also a feeling of loss.
“Alright…” Selina replied gently. She touched Barbara’s hand, where she gripped her blanket tightly with both hands. “I would need to see what’s going on, Barbara. Would you let go?”
Reluctantly, Barbara’s vice-like grip on the blanket slackened. Slowly, Selina rolled down the blanket. “It’s alright, I just want to see,” Selina cooed to Barbara.
Just as she had thought, the bottom of Barbara’s nightgown was covered in a reddish-brown stain. Selina let out an instant sigh of relief. Barbara bad just gotten her first period.
She got up from the bed and Barbara looked at her with worried eyes. “It’s fine Barbara, please get up. Come here.”
Barbara hesitated, but she did as Selina asked. She glanced back at the bed and winced. Selina could see another blood stain on the bed underneath the blanket, presumably from when Barbara had been sleeping.
“Take off your dress,” Selina said gently. She rummaged through the drawer beside Barbara’s bed and pulled out a clean nightgown for her. Barbara held onto the stained nightgown, looking at it with a sick expression.
“Here,” Selina said, handing her the clean dress. “You can drop that one on the floor. Yes, right there.”
Selina filled a bowl with some water, then got towels and a clean cloth. She squatted in front of a confused Barbara, and began cleaning her up with the towel and clean water.
“Tell me what happened,” Selina said as she worked.
Barbara swallowed. “I don’t really know. I went to bed feeling well. When I woke up, I felt sick in my stomach. I woke up in pain and felt miserable. When I turned around, I saw this.” She gestured at her sheets and dress.
“I looked down and saw I was bleeding from there, and my stomach hurt something fierce. It was still bleeding when you came in. I must have caught a stomach disease, and if I’m bleeding this much, then it must be very serious.”
Barbara’s voice shook as she said the last bit, and she started sobbing soon after. Selina finished cleaning her, then wrapped a clean cloth between her legs to staunch the bleeding.
“Now put that on,” Selina said, pointing at the clean nightgown. Barbara did as she was told, her sobs breaking Selina’s heart.
While Barbara dressed, Selina ripped the stained sheets and blankets off Barbara’s bed, heaping it in a pile with the stained nightgown and the dirty towels.
Selina rummaged through the drawers again and found a clean set of bedding, which she set down on the bed. As Selina worked, Barbara watched her the whole time, her eyes filled with fear.
Selina walked around the bed towards Barbara and hugged her, holding her tightly. Barbara held on, squeezing Selina and shivering. “It’s alright,” Selina whispered to her. “It’s alright.”
Selina spread the new sheets over the bed, and spoke to Barbara over her shoulder as she did so. “What happened to you is completely normal. You have nothing to be afraid of. This is something that happens to women when they reach your age.
“You do not have a stomach disease, Barbara. Your body is only getting rid of excess blood. It will happen to you every month, and for many years to come. But it’s nothing for you to be worried about.”
“Why?” Barbara’s soft voice sounded curious. “Why does this happen?”
“This is how you know that you have become a woman,” Selina replied. “A grown woman.”
“Well, I don’t feel like a grown woman.”
Selina smiled sadly at Barbara as she tucked in the sheets. “We rarely do when we become women, unfortunately.”
Barbara looked thoughtful. “What about boys? Do boys also feel like this when they become men?”
Selina glanced at Barbara. Her voice had grown firmer the more they spoke. Her previous look of alarm was now replaced with one of curiosity.
