The Baudelaire's 2.0 - Chapter 8

After getting the news about Chloe, Maverick and Lilia weren't sure where they would go from here. They were overwhelmed and unsure of where to go and what to do, especially Maverick.

He just wanted to hold Chloe in his arms, safe and protected from the world, he never wanted to let go.
Maverick: "Chloe, I love you with all of my heart, I am going to do my best for you and help you through this and make sure you do the best you can in life, I am going to be there for you every step of the way."

Maverick may have been lost and unsure about what he should do but Lilia decided to get started on a few social exercises to help Chloe to open up and talk a little more, she wasn't sure if it would do any good but it wouldn't hurt to try, right?

Lilia: "Let's talk to Mr. Bear, Chloe. He says hi and wants to know how your day is going?"
Chloe was reluctant and refused to talk to the bear but she did reach out for it, that is one step in the right direction, I guess.

Since all of the doctors suggestions and everything Lilia researched turned up no results and just seemed to take Chloe back a step Lilia decided to try something else, something that she just knew would help.
Lilia: "Hello, is this the Twinbrook Animal Shelter?"

Lilia and Maverick wanted a dog to play with since they moved to Twinbrook but they didn't think the timing was right until now, maybe the constant socialization from the new dog would help Chloe on a daily basis.
Meet Scooby, Chloe's new Corgi!

Since Scooby was from the shelter Lilia wanted to teach him a few basics before she let Chloe meet him, it didn't take much work since Scooby was such a smart dog.
Lilia: "Sit."

Scooby was a little hyper and didn't want to listen at first but he quickly caught on.

Good Scooby!
Now it was time to see how Chloe and Scooby would react to one another, Chloe had never been around any animals before and the shelter had no records of Scooby's attitude towards children so it was a win or lose situation.

........................

Chloe was a little nervous at first but Scooby went right up to Chloe and started to investigate.

And everything seems perfect! Chloe is still a little unsure about Scooby but this is the first time Maverick and Lilia have seen their little girl open up and let something into her life without being shy and turning away!

After all of the excitement Maverick thought it was the perfect time to bond with his little girl and teach her to walk, she was a brilliant little girl, just the SM holds her back from everything they know that she can do.

Maverick: "Come to Daddy, I know you can do it Chloe!"

Maverick: "That's my Chloe Bear!"

Scooby loved to follow Chloe around, it seemed like he thought it was his job to protect her and help her through her tough moments.

Lilia couldn't believe the improvement Chloe was making, she knew that there was still a long way to go and Chloe would most likely be stuck with SM for the rest of her life but just a little improvement gave her such high hopes.

Lilia decided to take Chloe to the park to see if she could find a few other kids around Chloe's age so she could play with them, she was out of luck, apparently Twinbrook didn't have many children in the town.

But she did ask a few people if they knew any families in town with children, she came across a very nice woman that pointed her in the right direction.
Lilia: "Do you know of any families here in Twinbrook that has children around my daughters age? I am trying to find a few children that I can set play dates up with."
Woman: "The only family that comes to mind is the Bunch family, they have three children and I think one of them happens to be the same age as your daughter."
Lilia: "Thank You so much!"

Lilia headed right down to the Bunch household to see if she could set up a play date.
Lilia: "Hi, my name is Lilia Baudelaire, this is my daughter, Chloe. I have been looking for a few families in town with children around Chloe's age to see if I could set up a play date every so often, do you have any children?"
Mr. Bunch: "Why yes I do, I have three children. Why don't you come inside and wait for my wife to get home with the kids, she should be home soon."

Mr. Bunch: "So, why are you going around town looking for play dates for you daughter?"
Lilia: "Well, it is sort of a long story, I will tell you the short version.. My daughter was diagnosed with a social disorder called Selective Mutism. It is not contagious, it is just a severe social anxiety and I wanted to set up an occasional play date to socialize Chloe to maybe help her come out of her shell."
Mr. Bunch: ..........

Mr. Bunch: "What are you trying to say?! Your daughter has Selective Mutism and you want to bring her into my house and give it to my kids?!"
Lilia: "No, NO! Mr. Bunch, I told you that it is NOT contagious in any way, it is just a social anxiety."

After Mr. Bunch's melt down Lilia decided that it would just be best to take Chloe home, she couldn't find a way to explain that SM is just a social anxiety and that there was no way that his children could get it. Would Chloe be an outcast because of this social anxiety? No matter how hard Maverick and Lilia try would they be forced to shelter their little girl from being picked on and teased for her problem? They know it isn't Chloe's fault but how could the world do this to her, why Chloe, why their little girl?