How Mildred got her job
—Ever noticed near the door to the roof—'Sarah + Jack' is there? Who are they?—
Young Sarah Duffey sighed. Twelve years old and she STILL had not been adopted. The orphanage caretaker, Miss Molly, always reminded her they had not found the right couple yet. She had grown immune to the fact that she might not ever be adopted. The only thing that really got her through the day was her crush, Jack Malone. He had a crop of dark curly hair and the same coffee-with-milk colored skin as her own. He was sweet and understanding and he liked Sarah, too. They were best friends, and Sarah loved hanging out with him and his family. He didn't know she was an orphan, though.
One day, Sarah was really swamped. She had gotten a D on her math test and was rejected by a couple who found fault in her. She went up to the roof and sagged against a wooden box.
'This is my escape,' she thought. 'If I could get as close to the sky as I can, maybe I could take off and fly…'
Sarah ran to the park, sobbing. She took off her small glasses and wiped her eyes.
"Sarah?" A gentle voice asked. It was Jack. "What's wrong?"
"Nothing." She turned away.
"Please tell me," he said.
So she did. She told him that she was an orphan, and how much she had been rejected. He was stunned.
"Hey! We should try to contact your birth mother! I mean, your last name is Duffey, which isn't that common. We'll just look in the phone book. How hard could it be?"
They agreed to start the next day, and Sarah fell asleep smiling.
"Sarah, dear, interview at two-thirty! Be sharp!" Miss Molly said in the morning.
Nine false phone calls and seven phone books later, Jack and Sarah decided to give up. Sarah glanced at her watch.
"Oh my gosh! I'm gonna be late! I gotta go, Jack. Bye!"
She ran to the orphanage into the interview room, where a couple and Miss Molly were waiting.
"We have some news," Miss Molly said. "This couple claims to be your birth parents."
Sarah felt her eyes widen. How could it be?
"I… left you here years ago because Jason," the woman motioned to her husband, "and I couldn't keep you. Jase lost his job, so we just couldn't afford you. He went back to school, because we knew it would be our only chance for money. Now he's a lawyer, and we wanted to start a family again. I'm not able to have a baby anymore, which is why I was hoping you'd still be here," she said. A lone tear slid down her cheek. "And you're just as beautiful as you were when I first gave you up."
Sarah cried, too. "Who are you?"
"I'm Cedes and this is Jason Duffey. We left an embroidered blanket in your basket that said 'Duffey'."
"That's how I knew your last name," Miss Molly said. "Are you interested in adoption?"
"Yes, yes, and yes!" Cedes cried out.
That afternoon, Sarah went to the roof to think.
"Jack must of called them last night!" She said aloud. If it wasn't for Jack, she would of never met her biological parents.
Using a sharp stone, she etched 'SARAH + JACK' near the door.
"Sarah, dear, come here please!" Miss Molly called.
She ran down to her new grinning parents.
"Hon," Cedes said. "I know it might be a big adjustment for you, but we've decided to rename you. Before I gave you up, I was gonna name you Mildred. It was my mother's name. Do you like it?"
"I love it!" Sarah grinned. She was SO happy.
Mildred knew one day, she would own am orphanage for those kids that were in the same shoes as her. She knew she would do that. And do an even better job.
Mildred headed off to join her brand-new family.
— I do like how this one turned out!:) Did you figure out who Sarah is?