She didn't know what a court room was, but she knew she was going there today, on this hot August Saturday. She said the words in her head a hundred times, "k-ort house. Ka-ort house. Court house." She liked to think she was smarter than most kids her age, at least, street smart. She had never gone to school and she hardly ever socialized with other children her own age. But she knew for a fact she was smarter than this Theodor kid.
He was sitting next to her in the van, both propped up on booster seats, kicking each other for leg space.
"Move it, girl!" Theodor demanded.
"Stop it!" Ashley complained.
"Okay you two, chill out. We're almost there," Janet commented, slapping Theodor lightly on the leg.
Sure enough, they pulled into a large parking garage of a brick building in the city. Ashley suddenly felt nervous. She knew today was a big day for her, the day she would be completely done with her last family and she would get a new one. Sam turned the engine off and stepped out. Janet slid open Ashley's side door open and unbuckled her seat belt.
"Have you ever been to the city Ashley?" She asked sweetly. Janet's hair was in a tight bun on the top of her head and she wore pretty pearl earing's. Everyone was dressed up for this meeting, including Ashley who wore a light material black dress and white sandals.
"No, I haven't." Ashley replied.
"We'll, how about after the boring meeting, we take you kids to the park. We packed extra clothes to change into," Her smile filled Ashley with warmth and comfort. Why couldn't she stay with these people forever?
Janet helped Ashley out of the van while Sam helped Theodor. They walked across the parking garage holding hands, but instead of going to the building entrance, they walked towards a sleek black car. A woman stepped out, with thick, short black hair and round glasses perched on her nose. She wore a black suit and pointy heals. A man stepped out from the other side, he was short and pudgy with a bushy mustache. He was also wearing a suit with a funny looking hat. Ashley felt shy and stepped closer to Janet.
"Ashley, this is Flo and Bob Spinelli. If things go correctly, they will be your new family. They're very close to our family and they're very nice." Janet said, kneeling to Ashley's height.
"Hello Ashley, it's so nice to finally meet you," Bob kneeled down too and extended his hand.
"Hi," Ashley squeaked, taking his hand for a shake.
A beeping noise filled the garage and Flo looked at her watch.
"Don't mean to rush, but if we don't hurry, we'll miss the appointment with the judge," Flo closed the car door and picked up a brief case. "Ashley, do you want to hold my hand?" She held out her hand for Ashley to take. She hesitated but something inside her told her to do it. And so far her gut instinct hasn't been wrong, so she took the lady's hand and walked with her and the rest of the adults into the court house.
"And why shouldn't I put the young girl into foster care?" A tall, skinny man in a large black, long sleeved shirt asked. He scared Ashley because he sounded mean.
"It would be in the best interest of Ashley to be put into a home that wouldn't break her down. The foster system is a terrible place if you've come from a home like hers," Janet held out a folder and gave it to the bailiff who handed it to the judge. He leafed through the pages, stopping at a few to take the information in.
"I see. And you believe Mr. and Mrs. Spinelli would be a good fit for her?"
"I do."
"Well, I purpose a six month trial. If Ashley still hasn't adjusted to a new life in a new home and doesn't seem like she's making progress with school, I will enforce the movement to send her into foster care." The judge banged the baffle onto his desk. "We're adjourned." And with that, he stood up and walked out through a door behind his chair.
Everyone let out a deep sigh. Theodor, who sat next to Ashley the whole time, played on his GameBoy, not realizing that the meeting was over.
"That could have gone a lot worse." Janet said.
"Oh I know. What time should we come over?" Flo asked, packing up the brief case.
"Tomorrow, you can join us for dinner."
Flo bent down and looked Ashley in the eyes. She gave her a warm smile and touched her cheek.
"I hope you will be very happy with us, dear." And with that, Flo kissed her on the forehead and walked away with Bob.
"Come along, Ashley, Theodor. We have a park to go play at." Sam said, taking Theodor's video game away from him.
"Hey!" He protested by stomping his foot on the ground.
Ashley giggled at the ridiculous behavior as they made their way to the parking garage. Janet and Sam helped the children into their seats and buckled them in.
"You know," Ashley whispered to Theodor. "This is our last day together."
"So?" Theodor whispered back, giving her an ugly face.
"So, I just wanted to say thank you." She snorted and stuck her tongue out at him. He shoved her arm and she shoved back. The kids bickered back and forth about who was tougher and Janet kept shushing them.
Next thing they knew, the van was upside-down. Ashley couldn't focus on anything except her own screams of fear. Someone had hit their van and sent them flying off the road. It rolled into a ditch, glass shattering in all directions. When the minute long roll finally ceased, everything was still. Ashley looked around, she was hanging upside-down in her booster seat. Theodor was knocked unconscious and dangled from his seatbelt like a puppet. The site of his body and the amount of blood in the van caused Ashley to faint, blacking out.