"It seems that one of your neighbors heard your screams and called 911.
It's a good thing too, we came just in time."
The officer laughed slightly as Tom sighed. He didn't find any of this amusing, and the fact that he had been seated in this boring office for over an hour answering the same questions over and over was ruining his already displeased mood.
"So. . . was your mother always this way to you? Did she usually beat you?" The cop leaned in closer as he questioned him. God, Tom was sick of this. He slammed his hands upon the wooden desk.
"The answer is still the same! Nothing's going to change no matter how many times you ask it! They're - all - the same!" Thomas annunciated the last sentance with a deadly tone, practically hissing it through clenched teeth. The officer sighed and pushed quickly away from the small table, stepping out to leave Tom alone in the ever quiet room.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
It wasn't too much later when again Tom was seated in the passenger's seat of a police car, staring blankly out the window watching the scenery float by. Oh, how he really didn't care to live right now. The same female cop from before was driving, and she cleared her throat before speaking.
"Thomas, I've got some good news. Your mother is going behind bars."
Yay. Finally someone put that woman where she belonged. His eyes didn't waver from watching the outside, however.
"Unfortunately, we couldn't get a hold of your father. Nobody has any idea where he might be either. So we've decided on placing you in an adoption home until we can find a pair of foster parents to take care of you. How's that sound?"
She turned to look at his small form momentarily, noticing as he shifted slightly in his seat. She offered a small smile, but he never turned. Only a small 'Mmm.' was his response. This transfer she knew was going to be a hard one, but this kid seemed as though he was ruined for life. Maybe he was. Her lithe fingers rummaged through a pile of papers on her lap as they paused at a stop light. "I'm going to need you to be on your best behavior as I introduce you to the people that run this center, alright?" Still no answer. She sighed and shook her head, pulling up to a rather large building and turning off the engine. Motioning for Tom to get out, she headed up the stairs as he followed her inside.
"Hello Mrs. Gillwen, I'm Officer Natale, we discussed bringing by young Thomas here."
Tom's black hues moved to peer around the cops legs, eyeing the ever plump woman who stood before them with a rather wide grin plastered upon her face. She kneeled before him offering a small hug, but he refused. She only smiled wider. "Seems he's a little shy. Boy, he certainly is older than I had suspected." Both the women laughed. Natale bent to urge Tom over towards the living quarters where several other young kids stood, wide-eyed and interested.
"Why don't you go acquaint yourself with the other children?" Despite the fact that he practically clung to her leg and refused to move, she managed to push him over towards the other boys and girls. With a nod she turned back towards Mrs. Gillwen, handing her the paperwork and talking about what seemed to be important matters.
Thomas blinked as he shoved his hands into his pocket, scanning over the kids before glancing to the floor. From the looks of them most of the children were between the ages of two and five. Well didn't that just work out dandy? Tom, being a whole two and a half years older then decided that he would just have to hang out with himself and the shadows. It wasn't like he wasn't used to the darkness anyway.
The door shut quietly as Officer Natale left. Tom turned to watch as her car pulled out of a parking spot, before nearly jumping out of his skin as Mrs. Gillwen placed her round fingers on his shoulders. She chuckled.
"My my, so jumpy Thomas. Let me show you where you'll be bunking for the time being, and then I'll explain some of the rules of the household. Oh, and one major thing - no fighting."
Already Tom hated this. He groggily shuffled up the stairs, anything Mrs. Gillwen spoke to him went through one ear and out the other. At least he wasn't sharing a room with any babies, he thought.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
'Already it's been four full days, and I don't know any of the children's names. It's not that I'm stupid; it's that I don't care. None of them are my age, and I feel so strange hanging out with them. Staying in my room and playing with my shadow puppets and a few new toys Mrs. Gillwen bought me has been the only thing keeping me un-bored.'
Tom sighed as he tossed the paper aside after scribbling on it. Lying on his stomach, feet hanging off the edge of his bed, pillow propped up underneath his chin, he really was quite comfortable. Tom just stared at the opposite wall, wondering how long he was going to live like this. When he heard Mrs. Gillwen's cheery voice ring up the stairs calling all kids for dinner he pouted, rolling off the bed. That was one of few things he enjoyed - he got to eat more than once a day.
Taking slow steps to descend the stairs he was quite surprised when he reached the bottom floor. He blinked, tilting his head to observe this new person. It was a she, and a bit taller than he was as well, blonde hair falling to her waist pulled away from her face with a purple headband. She wore a matching T-shirt and blue jeans, but none of that really mattered. What Tom immediately thought was that she was around his age, and could be a friend to talk to.
After getting her plate of supper she tuned, flashing a bright smile towards Tom. Seemed she was happy to see an older child as well. Stepping close, she extended a hand as she had seen the adults often do. "Hi, I'm Christina. Who're you?"
Tom stared at her hand before lightly taking it to shake. How formally odd that felt. . . "Thomas. . ." He managed a small, shy smile, before taking a seat next to her to eat.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
After dinner they talked quite a bit, learning about the likes and dislikes of one another. She was eight years old, just had her birthday last month. And she wasn't new, just turned out that Tom hadn't gotten out enough to run into her before. They laughed and wandered the household together, poking fun at each other.
"So, did your real mommy and daddy die too?" Christina asked, placing her hands behind her as they walked towards the basement where hoards of toys were stored. Tom shook his head.
"No, I don't know what happened to my dad, and my mom. . . well, she's not around." He turned to eye her, hands in his pockets as usual. His black brows arched. "Yours are dead?"
She nodded. "I was at my Auntie's and she told me that they got into an 'axi-dent.' My Auntie didn't have enough money to take care of me so she sent me here." She grinned. "But it's not bad here. Mrs. Gillwen is really really nice, and whenever new parents come to look for a kid we all dress up really nice and smile really big. Mrs. Gillwen says I have a nice smile so I'll get picked soon."
Tom's eyes went wide. "People buy us, like a pet?"
Christina laughed. "No, silly. They adopt us, and become our new mommy and daddy."
He blinked, slightly confused. "Oh, I see."
She laughed again, tugging on his hand. "Come on, I've got lots of cool stuff to show you!"
The officer laughed slightly as Tom sighed. He didn't find any of this amusing, and the fact that he had been seated in this boring office for over an hour answering the same questions over and over was ruining his already displeased mood.
"So. . . was your mother always this way to you? Did she usually beat you?" The cop leaned in closer as he questioned him. God, Tom was sick of this. He slammed his hands upon the wooden desk.
"The answer is still the same! Nothing's going to change no matter how many times you ask it! They're - all - the same!" Thomas annunciated the last sentance with a deadly tone, practically hissing it through clenched teeth. The officer sighed and pushed quickly away from the small table, stepping out to leave Tom alone in the ever quiet room.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
It wasn't too much later when again Tom was seated in the passenger's seat of a police car, staring blankly out the window watching the scenery float by. Oh, how he really didn't care to live right now. The same female cop from before was driving, and she cleared her throat before speaking.
"Thomas, I've got some good news. Your mother is going behind bars."
Yay. Finally someone put that woman where she belonged. His eyes didn't waver from watching the outside, however.
"Unfortunately, we couldn't get a hold of your father. Nobody has any idea where he might be either. So we've decided on placing you in an adoption home until we can find a pair of foster parents to take care of you. How's that sound?"
She turned to look at his small form momentarily, noticing as he shifted slightly in his seat. She offered a small smile, but he never turned. Only a small 'Mmm.' was his response. This transfer she knew was going to be a hard one, but this kid seemed as though he was ruined for life. Maybe he was. Her lithe fingers rummaged through a pile of papers on her lap as they paused at a stop light. "I'm going to need you to be on your best behavior as I introduce you to the people that run this center, alright?" Still no answer. She sighed and shook her head, pulling up to a rather large building and turning off the engine. Motioning for Tom to get out, she headed up the stairs as he followed her inside.
"Hello Mrs. Gillwen, I'm Officer Natale, we discussed bringing by young Thomas here."
Tom's black hues moved to peer around the cops legs, eyeing the ever plump woman who stood before them with a rather wide grin plastered upon her face. She kneeled before him offering a small hug, but he refused. She only smiled wider. "Seems he's a little shy. Boy, he certainly is older than I had suspected." Both the women laughed. Natale bent to urge Tom over towards the living quarters where several other young kids stood, wide-eyed and interested.
"Why don't you go acquaint yourself with the other children?" Despite the fact that he practically clung to her leg and refused to move, she managed to push him over towards the other boys and girls. With a nod she turned back towards Mrs. Gillwen, handing her the paperwork and talking about what seemed to be important matters.
Thomas blinked as he shoved his hands into his pocket, scanning over the kids before glancing to the floor. From the looks of them most of the children were between the ages of two and five. Well didn't that just work out dandy? Tom, being a whole two and a half years older then decided that he would just have to hang out with himself and the shadows. It wasn't like he wasn't used to the darkness anyway.
The door shut quietly as Officer Natale left. Tom turned to watch as her car pulled out of a parking spot, before nearly jumping out of his skin as Mrs. Gillwen placed her round fingers on his shoulders. She chuckled.
"My my, so jumpy Thomas. Let me show you where you'll be bunking for the time being, and then I'll explain some of the rules of the household. Oh, and one major thing - no fighting."
Already Tom hated this. He groggily shuffled up the stairs, anything Mrs. Gillwen spoke to him went through one ear and out the other. At least he wasn't sharing a room with any babies, he thought.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
'Already it's been four full days, and I don't know any of the children's names. It's not that I'm stupid; it's that I don't care. None of them are my age, and I feel so strange hanging out with them. Staying in my room and playing with my shadow puppets and a few new toys Mrs. Gillwen bought me has been the only thing keeping me un-bored.'
Tom sighed as he tossed the paper aside after scribbling on it. Lying on his stomach, feet hanging off the edge of his bed, pillow propped up underneath his chin, he really was quite comfortable. Tom just stared at the opposite wall, wondering how long he was going to live like this. When he heard Mrs. Gillwen's cheery voice ring up the stairs calling all kids for dinner he pouted, rolling off the bed. That was one of few things he enjoyed - he got to eat more than once a day.
Taking slow steps to descend the stairs he was quite surprised when he reached the bottom floor. He blinked, tilting his head to observe this new person. It was a she, and a bit taller than he was as well, blonde hair falling to her waist pulled away from her face with a purple headband. She wore a matching T-shirt and blue jeans, but none of that really mattered. What Tom immediately thought was that she was around his age, and could be a friend to talk to.
After getting her plate of supper she tuned, flashing a bright smile towards Tom. Seemed she was happy to see an older child as well. Stepping close, she extended a hand as she had seen the adults often do. "Hi, I'm Christina. Who're you?"
Tom stared at her hand before lightly taking it to shake. How formally odd that felt. . . "Thomas. . ." He managed a small, shy smile, before taking a seat next to her to eat.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
After dinner they talked quite a bit, learning about the likes and dislikes of one another. She was eight years old, just had her birthday last month. And she wasn't new, just turned out that Tom hadn't gotten out enough to run into her before. They laughed and wandered the household together, poking fun at each other.
"So, did your real mommy and daddy die too?" Christina asked, placing her hands behind her as they walked towards the basement where hoards of toys were stored. Tom shook his head.
"No, I don't know what happened to my dad, and my mom. . . well, she's not around." He turned to eye her, hands in his pockets as usual. His black brows arched. "Yours are dead?"
She nodded. "I was at my Auntie's and she told me that they got into an 'axi-dent.' My Auntie didn't have enough money to take care of me so she sent me here." She grinned. "But it's not bad here. Mrs. Gillwen is really really nice, and whenever new parents come to look for a kid we all dress up really nice and smile really big. Mrs. Gillwen says I have a nice smile so I'll get picked soon."
Tom's eyes went wide. "People buy us, like a pet?"
Christina laughed. "No, silly. They adopt us, and become our new mommy and daddy."
He blinked, slightly confused. "Oh, I see."
She laughed again, tugging on his hand. "Come on, I've got lots of cool stuff to show you!"