"I can't take care of a kid. She's a teenager, but still."

Brian sat in his apartment, drinking a bottle of beer. He looked over at his bed and saw his niece sleeping. He sighed and took another drink. "Poor kid," he thought, thinking back to the day before. He couldn't believe that his own sister was that bad of a mother. The only thing he had felt was rage when he saw her hit his niece and as he made his niece go home with him. Now that his temper had subsided, he was contemplating what to do next. His apartment wasn't big enough for them both to live in, and it's not like he was anywhere near perfect. Oh, he guessed he was a good enough guy, but he wasn't guardian material.

He looked over at the sleeping teenager again and thought about what would happen to her if he didn't get custody of her. She would be bounced around from foster home to foster home, most likely getting abused and mistreated. The thought made him sick to his stomach, or was that the alcohol? Anyway, he didn't like the idea of her going through more abuse. He decided then and there that he was going to do everything he could to keep her safe, even if that meant taking her in himself.