-Chapter 2-
A few days later
The car rumbled softly as I buckled my seatbelt. Ms. Heming's car was small and a dark shade of black that fit her perfectly. Well, as far as I could tell anyway.
I stared at my lap waiting for her to tell me which orphanage she planned to ship me off to. For all I knew, it was called 'Once Upon a Time' like living in an Orphanage made for the relative-less and unwanted was some type of Disney fairytale.If that horrifying thought came true I'd voluntarily barf. Preferably on the tacky sign.
"I'm taking you to the Home called 'A Smile for You'," Ms. Heming's eyebrows drew together and she crinkled her nose. My thoughts exactly.
I looked out the window as she reached for the radio. Her blond hair was pulled back into a tight pony tail and I caught a glimpse of a huge diamond ring. So Ms. Hemings was engaged, good for her. A couple seconds later Green Day danced from the speakers. She turned it up till it drowned out the rumbling of her car, even though I wasn't afraid. But to tell the truth, I was very wary of the cars around us. Every time a vehicle roamed a little to close I couldn't help but shift away uncomfortably. Only when I slightly began to relax did we run over a pot-hole in the road. My butt lifted from the seat momentarily
And the shriek left my throat before I could stop it.
I covered my face with my hands to quiet myself down and put my head in my lap. A tear betrayed me and slipped down my cheek. As I gasped for air Ms. Hemings pulled the car over and placed her hand on my shoulder, hesitating.
"Blair?...What's wrong?," when I didn't answer she repeated more urgently, "What's wrong? Are you hurt?"
My head slowly shook from side to side. She nodded slightly and continued down the street. Of course I felt grateful towards her since she carefully avoided any kind of hole or bump the rest of the way. Then 15 agonizing minutes later we pulled onto a small deserted road. In the distance I could just make out a run-down looking house. Above the door a rotting sign hung that said 'A Smile for You' in the colors of a rainbow.
Should I barf now? Or save it for later?
Two minutes had passed but Ms. Hemings and I were still sitting in the car. She didn't seem to want to get out any more than me.
"Um, Blair-," Ms. Hemings started, but she was interrupted by a knock on the window.
Ms. Hemings frowned and hesitated a slight second before rolling down her window. Just outside the door was a plump middle-aged woman that stood a bit closer than necessary. On her face was the biggest, fakest smile I had ever seen. Not that I had seen very many since my family had lived apart from the city. My family's gone. I could instantly feel my mood darken and my face harden. The woman at the window stepped back and gestured for us to get out of the car. So we did.
"Welcome to A Smile for You," she opened her arms as if expecting a hug, "I'm Mrs. Tread, but you can call me headmistress."
I shot a 'seriously?' look in Ms. Hemings direction, but she ignored it. Ms. Hemings took Mrs. Tread's hand and gave a firm shake, "Hi, you can call me Ms. Hemings. I came to drop Blair off. She was assigned here. You got a notice?"
Mrs. Tread studied me as if seeing me for the first time. "Yes yes, of course! We've been eagerly waiting for you…Blair was it?" I nodded.
"Come come, we don't need to stand out here collecting dust." She ushered us up the creaking steps and into the house. The inside didn't look as abandoned as the outside but it still looked slightly unstable. A long narrow hallway led to a small room in the back. Seeing a yellow couch and a small TV I figured it was the living room. There was a window on the far side of the wall covered by white floral curtains. Looking to the left down another hall I saw about three doors. Then I looked to the right and saw an archway that I just assumed led to the kitchen.
Suddenly I realized that Mrs. Tread had asked me a question, "Sorry, what?"
A look of pure annoyance, anger, and something dark flickered in her eyes but it disappeared when Ms. Heming's turned around. Mrs. Tread didn't seem to care if I saw her ugly side though, I stiffened.
"I said, 'Would you like me to show you to your room?' You'll be sharing a room with Kiana. Hope you don't mind," she beamed her bright, yet super fake, smile our way again and briskly walked down the hall.
Before I could stop myself I sighed under my breath, "If she keeps smiling like that her face will crack."
To my relief Mrs. Tread didn't seem to hear me, but Ms. Hemings did. She looked over her shoulder and shook her head sternly. I got the message. Behave, but I saw the slight upward twitch of her lips before she turned back around.
They disappeared into the room, feeling awkward and out of place I followed them inside. The room was surprisingly big, but there was no way anyone could move around without having to twist sideways. Mrs. Tread had stuffed three twin-sized beds into the room. She had also mentioned that I had a roommate but she was nowhere to be found.
One of the beds- the one in the far corner- had red sheets and black pillow covers. Mrs. Tread pointed to the beds closer to the door, "Go ahead and pick which one you want kitten. I'll get some sheets for you so you can settle in."
Did she just call me kitten? God, I hoped Ms. Hemings knows what she's doing. I've always been good at reading others' expressions but she was a mystery to me.
Ms. Hemings turned to me, "Well, I have some papers to sign so you go meet the other girls," she turned back to Mrs. Tread. "Is that okay?"
"Yes that's perfect! I'll just go get them," Mrs. Tread walked into the hall. We stood there quietly, listening to her foot-steps fade. Then only when she was completely gone did Ms. Hemings speak.
"I think she has some kind of mental illness," I boldly told Ms. Hemings. She raised an eyebrow at me.
"No, I'm serious. Something isn't right in her eyes. Like, earlier I saw a slash of…something. Something dark, it's there if you look closely enough."
She checked to make sure Mrs. Tread was still down the hall then came around to where I was standing, squished between the two beds.
"There haven't been any reports of strange behavior or mistreatings' here. All the kids adopted from 'A Smile for You' foster care said that they enjoyed their stay and that Mrs. Tread was very kind." She looked as though she didn't believe her own words.
"Whatever you say," I mumbled under my breath, she didn't respond but I knew she had heard me.
Just then Mrs. Tread came back into the room, dragging a couple of angry looking girls. The one that entered the room first had wild red hair with a hazard of freckles. Behind her stood a short, stocky blond that couldn't of been over 16 years old.
"Great! So while you three get to know another Ms. Hemings and I will be in the other room. Play nice now," she sent a meaningful look to Freckles and Blondie as she left the room. Ms. Hemings followed behind her, giving me one last glance over her shoulder before she vanished from the room.
Freckles stepped forward first, "Okay let's lay down the rules. First of all, you sleep HERE," she grabbed my small bag and tossed it onto the bed next to the door. It hit the bed with such force that it rebounded and thumped to the floor.
"Second, you will be doing the dishes, the trash, and anything else we demand-," a cruel smile formed at her lips.
Is she for real?
"Last but not least, if you ever even THINK about giving me a nickname like 'Red' or 'Raggedy Ann' or anything along those lines, I will make sure that you're miserable."
Too late, I thought to myself bitterly. My thoughts flashed briefly to the car crash that night. My eyes began to burn, I blinked-hard -to hold back the unwanted tears.