After a long, exhausting day of packing, unloading, and getting
everything situated, we were finally home.
Our new house sat just outside the city, surrounded by open fields
and towering trees. The peaceful countryside was exactly what
we’d dreamed of. There was plenty of room for the children to
play, space for the dogs to run freely, and fresh air that somehow
made all the years of struggling feel worth it.
For the first time in a long time…
We finally had a place we could truly call home.
Kimberly, however, seemed interested in only one thing.
The doll.
She held it close the entire drive, gently brushing its hair and
whispering to it as if it were a real child.
I smiled.
“So… have you picked out a name for her?”
Kimberly looked up with excitement.
JASMINE: EVIL NEVER LETS GO 7“Her name is Jasmine.”
“Jasmine,” I repeated with a laugh. “That’s actually a pretty
name.”
Looking at the doll’s strange expression and the way Kimberly
refused to let it leave her arms, I couldn’t help but think this little
toy was about to become another member of the family.
Tommy, on the other hand, wanted nothing to do with it.
My son had always been quiet and independent. He was far more
excited about finally having his own bedroom than he was about
his sister’s newest toy. Whenever Kimberly carried Jasmine into
the living room or sat the doll beside her at the table, Tommy
would quietly excuse himself.
“I don’t like that doll,” he finally admitted.
“Why not?” I asked.
“It looks at me.”
I chuckled.
“It’s just a doll.”
He wasn’t convinced.
While the children explored their new rooms, my husband and I
unpacked boxes and organized the house. We wanted everything
settled before dinner so we could relax together for our first family
movie night.
Kimberly never once put Jasmine down.
I tried not to overthink it.
Children become attached to toys all the time.
Still…
JASMINE: EVIL NEVER LETS GO 8Something about the way she stared into that doll’s eyes made me
slightly uneasy.
Later that evening, Tommy helped his sister begin building a small
treehouse in the backyard a place where Kimberly insisted Jasmine
would have tea parties with her dolls.
Inside, I started preparing dinner.
“Mommy,” Kimberly called.
“Can we have cherry pie for dessert?”
I laughed.
“Since when do you like cherry pie? You always ask for banana
pudding.”
Kimberly looked down at Jasmine before answering.
“Because that’s what Jasmine wants.”
I smiled, assuming it was another game of pretend.
“Well, if Jasmine eats all of her dinner, maybe I’ll make cherry pie
tomorrow.”
Kimberly grinned.
“Thanks, Mommy.”
After dinner we gathered in the living room for movie night.
To my surprise, Kimberly picked The Conjuring.
I couldn’t help but laugh.
“Seriously? A haunted doll movie?”
As the film played, I found myself glancing back and forth
between the television and Jasmine sitting quietly beside
Kimberly.
JASMINE: EVIL NEVER LETS GO 9The timing couldn’t have been worse.
The possessed doll on the screen looked unsettling enough…
But somehow the doll sitting in my own living room made me even
more uncomfortable.
When the movie finally ended, I tucked Tommy into bed first. He
never cared much for bedtime stories.
Kimberly was different.
She loved spooky stories especially ones about haunted houses
and creepy dolls.
Before I turned out the light, she held Jasmine close and smiled.
“Don’t forget to tuck Jasmine in too.”
I laughed nervously.
“So she doesn’t fall out of bed,” Kimberly whispered.
“…and wander away.”
For just a moment…
I didn’t know what to say.
Maybe bringing this doll home hadn’t been such a good idea after
all.
Over the next few days, Kimberly’s attachment only grew
stronger.
She refused to let Jasmine out of her sight.
She talked to her.
Answered questions no one else had heard.
Even saved a place for her at the dinner table.
JASMINE: EVIL NEVER LETS GO 10Watching my daughter carefully set a plate in front of the doll
made my stomach tighten.
I tried to brush it off as imagination.
Children pretend.
That’s what they do.
Still…
Something didn’t feel right.
I decided I’d have a gentle conversation with Kimberly after school
one afternoon.
She needed to understand that Jasmine was only a doll.
Dolls don’t eat.
They don’t think.
And they certainly don’t talk.
At least…
That’s what I kept telling myself.
Deep down, I couldn’t shake the strange feeling that Jasmine had
somehow become more than just another toy.
I even caught myself laughing at the thought.
What was next?
A bath for Jasmine?
A doctor’s appointment?
Maybe even enrolling her in school?
The ideas sounded ridiculous…
Yet watching Kimberly interact with that doll made each
impossible thought seem just a little more believable.
JASMINE: EVIL NEVER LETS GO 11One thing was certain.
I had hoped another baby would keep Kimberly from feeling
lonely.
Instead…
It seemed Jasmine had already filled that role.
And for reasons I couldn’t explain…
That worried me more than I wanted to admit.