Work Text:
“You are my sunshine,
my only sunshine.”
Slowly, you crack your eyes open. The soft light of dawn shines through the curtain in the doorway. Rolling onto your back, you stare at the bottom of the bunk above you. You sigh and glance at your watch. It’s almost five, a little over an hour before you would normally wake up.
“You make me happy
when skies are gray.”
A soft voice trickles through the silence of the cellblock. Even as you close your eyes and try to go back to sleep, your mind focuses on it.
“You’ll never know, dear
how much I love you.”
It’s so soothing, you can’t help but want to hear more. You sit up, stretching out your tired body. The voice captivates you, momentarily distracting you from the soreness in your muscles from hours of fence duty.
“Please don’t take
my sunshine away.”
The voice begins to fade away. It makes the room feel empty, so you slip out of bed to follow it. Ducking beneath the curtain, you step out onto the landing and peer down below.
It takes a moment for your eyes to adjust, but when you do, you discover the source of the singing: on the lower level, Carol walks back and forth, cradling baby Judith in her arms. She picks up singing again, swaying to the melody.
Her voice sounds miles away as you are transfixed by her face; by the way she smiles down at the little girl as she sings to her. Judith coos back loudly, breaking into little fits of giggles that could melt the coldest of hearts.
You don’t know how long you stand there and watch, rooted to the floor, before Carol looks up and sees you.
“I’m sorry,” she says quietly. “Did we wake you up?”
“It’s okay,” you tell her, making your way towards the stairs.
“We can be quieter,” she says, then looks down at the bundle in her arms. “Isn’t that right, Judith?”
“No,” you say quickly. “Keep singing. Please.”
Carol beams at you, her smile twinkling in the early morning sunlight that peeks through the prison windows. Then she smiles down at Judith again, twirling her around and starting to sing again.
“You are my sunshine,
my only sunshine.
You make me happy
when skies are gray.”
As you listen, you sit down on the stairs. You lean your head against the railing, and watch Carol as she and Judith spin about the room. Her voice fills the air, spreading joy despite the gloomy backdrop. You can’t help the smile that breaks across your face.
“You’ll never know, dear
how much I love you.
Please don’t take
my sunshine away.”