Chapter 3 - 1985
"Miss Wang, your performance at school has been quite a dramatic reversal. Is everything alright at home?" Mrs. Tanner, Wang's homeroom teacher, asked with concern as the young student in front of her looked down and focused on a tear on her skirt.
"Miss Wang? Please look up when I'm talking to you."
The eleven year old sighed and gave the teacher eye contact. A lot had changed in the past year which resulted in some weight loss, making the girl very lean.
"Has your mother been drinking again?" Tanner prodded and Wang flinched at her words.
The beautiful and kind Wen Ting never recovered from the death of her husband. Promises that she would stay strong for her daughter went unfulfilled. Instead, she took to drinking to dull the aching pain of loss and to escape from reality. At first the drunkenness manifested monthly, then weekly before it spiraled down the daily path of alcoholism.
The only child of Guo Xiang and Wen Ting had no choice but to grow up quickly in the past year, managing all the household chores as well as caring for her wasted mother. To make things worse, the power had been cut as the bills were not paid. Wen Ting was fired from her job for her poor behavior. Without any light, how could the child study and do her homework at night?
Once more, the raven haired half-Asian girl sighed. "Again is an understatement, Mrs. Tanner. It happens daily now."
The teacher's expression softened. "We can help you if you let us do so."
"And what about my mom? She needs it more than me."
"We'll get assistance for the both of you, Miss Wang." Mrs. Tanner said fiercely, now determined to help her student out of this rut.
It seemed there was no other choice but to accept the aid and the young girl nodded. "Okay."
Tanner gave the young one a reassuring smile. "That's good to hear. For now, you can stay in school to complete your homework and I will personally drive you home after that."
Miss Wang was stunned by the offer but was grateful nonetheless. She whispered a small thank you before leaving the room to enjoy the rest of her recess break.
The sun was almost setting when Mrs. Tanner gave her student a ride back to the Wang residence as promised a fortnight ago. Reassuring her teacher that everything was still fine as always, the young Asian girl watched the older woman hesitate slightly before driving off. Turning the key to enter the house, the stench of alcohol hit her when she entered the room and she found her mother passed out on the sofa with an empty bottle in hand.
The young girl sighed and picked the bottle out of the blonde's hand, disposing it in the rubbish bin in the kitchen before returning with a towel to clean up the pool of alcohol and vomit on the floor. The cloth was rinsed out and the girl washed her hands before taking out a packet of instant noodles from the cupboard. She broke the dried noodles into half and poured on the flavorings. It was all they had for a while and the crunchy bits reminded her of eating a cookie if she willed herself to think of it that way.
Not long after Guo Xiang's death, the little Miss Wang began to take care of all the chores in the house that ranged from cooking to cleaning. Meals were simple but still edible nonetheless. It was only when Wen Ting did not show up to work did the household income deplete quickly… Alcohol turned Wang's life upside down.
The only bright side to this was that Wen Ting was a quiet drunk, always lost in thought as she wept silently to herself. She never struck or yelled at her daughter, she just did absolutely nothing.
A creaking of the sofa jolted the girl from her thoughts. Mother had woken up. It was time to bring some food to feed her. Like a zombie, Wen Ting reached out and ate the dried noodles with a crunch, wiping away the powdered flavoring that had fallen on her clothes. There was silence as mother and daughter ate the meagre dinner.
Miss Wang went to clean up the living room and kitchen and when they were done, someone knocked on the door. The young girl couldn't help but freeze in her tracks. This was how they delivered the message of her father's death. What other bad news could they possible give this time?
Surprisingly, her mother's gaze was focused on the door. Wen Ting's posture was unnaturally stiff as she too, was reliving memories of that day. She watched as her precious daughter opened the door to reveal Mrs. Tanner and a couple of strangers.
"Miss Wang, I hope I'm not interrupting anything but could all of us have a talk outside?" The teacher asked as her eyes struggled to adjust to the lack of illumination inside the house.
The eleven year old student nodded and she gingerly guided her mom out to the porch where the sky was now taking on a purple-blue hue. All of them sat on the rickety wooden benches and the young girl was the first one to speak, "May I ask what this is about, Mrs. Tanner?"
"These are social workers from the foster home. They have accessed your case and recommend that you be put through the foster system while your mother undergoes rehabilitation."
The girl's eyes widened with surprise. "We're doing okay though…"
The unknown male beside her teacher spoke up, "You do not have any running electricity or water and are hardly eating anything. Sooner or later, you'll be homeless when the mortgage payment runs out. We can help you. Both of you can still see each other during your time in the system."
"But-!" Before the girl could say anything else, Wen Ting spoke with a raspy voice, "She will be taken care of?"
Everyone was surprised by the blonde woman's sudden moment of clarity. "Yes, ma'am," Mrs. Tanner said reassuringly. "She will be fostered into a good home. In fact, we found one just suited for her."
Wen Ting turned towards her daughter to stroke her matted raven hair. "Go, my little one. I promise to get you back."
Small hazel eyes looked at Wen Ting's blue ones with awe. "Really?"
The reply the young one got was her mother wrapping her arms around her and whispering, "Wo ai ni."
Miss Wang buried her nose into the crook of Wen Ting's neck as she struggled to keep her emotions in check. "I love you too, mama."
With her small luggage in tow, the eleven year old girl sat in the back of the social worker's car and watched the World go by. She missed seeing the stars twinkling in the sky at night and they were rather soothing to her eyes. Her thoughts went back to the tearful goodbye between her and her beloved mama. That sudden moment of lucidity had Wen Ting spilling all her love on the girl and it was overwhelming.
The social workers managed to calm the mother-daughter pair and whisked the girl away before they teared up once again. Now Miss Wang was somewhat excited and also nervous about this new foster home they were talking about.
The car pulled up into a nice mansion at the end of the road and the girl stepped out and smoothed her dress, wanting to make a good impression. The social worker rang the bell and a blonde woman in her thirties answered the door.
"You've got to be kidding." The woman said as she eyed the foster child up and down. "You said her mother was White! I can't have this in my house! Their kind dirties everything!"
The young girl was taken aback by such racist behavior and the social worker stepped in. "Ma'am, you signed an agreement to foster this child for six months. You cannot back out now."
"I agreed to foster a White kid, not this chink!"
There was no choice but to put her foot down, "I am actually mixed race, ma'am. I do not appreciate that language." She glared at the older woman fiercely. Her parents had taught her to stand her ground and educate others when it came to her heritage. Harsh words and ignorance would lead to nowhere.
A scoff and eye roll from the woman was her response. "You'll be out of this house before you know it." The door opened a little wider for the young girl to walk into her new home.
Miss Wang thought that the hellish nightmare was over. It was only just beginning. Hopefully her mother would sober up and whisk her back to their normal lives.
Author's Note: "Wo ai ni" is Mandarin Chinese for "I love you". Ada is of mixed heritage after all so naturally she would learn another language besides English.
Bad things are happening one after the other huh? I apologize if the racial slur makes your uncomfortable but there would still be some racial issues back then.
You might also be wondering, why didn't the foster family see a picture of Ada before agreeing to take her in? Well, I believe there were lapses and loopholes in the foster system. The social workers were very anxious to give Ada a home so they failed to follow protocol.
If you're reading this, please leave a review. It's always helpful to know if other people besides my beta reader enjoys this story. :)