GleeJunkie007: YAY indeed! I'm really looking forward to writing her, she will be in this chapter and I hope I get her right. Oh and by the way- you should probably- reading this chapter, be able to guess what my favorite line of it is.
Indigosky17: Oh yeah, that's going to be a… a…. a challenge was the word I was looking for. But… well in Sweden we have a saying- it's mentioned in this chapter. And well… Thank you for your review, and yeah. I guess I'm kinda sad Faith's left too but I did make people move out to be able to fit in the syoc- characters, and more will be leaving : ( I hope you enjoy this chapter
Cookie05: Well then it's good that here it is! Michael will be in this chapter and I hope I write him right. Thank you for your review.
X snow- pony x: Thanks. And you'll have to see about that. I'm really looking forward to seeing Belle too and she will be in this chapter
Epicfanfictiongirl: I know you're looking forward to see Yazzy, I'm looking forward to write about her too. But it will be yet a while to fit with some storylines when Yazzy can see Kenny is pregnant. I'm happy you're reading it, thank you for your review and I hope you enjoy this chapter
I realized I had written one thing wrong in the cast list- Alfie is thirteen not twelve years old.
So, here comes the chapter with the real introductions of the new characters. I hope I write your character right, and I hope you enjoy the chapter.
Mike silent for several seconds, and one and one the residents of Ashdene Ridge started gathering in the hallway. "Well" Mike said at last. "Come in, all of you. Ashdene ridge is already crowded." He turned to the man who was obviously named Derek. "But… I guess it's possible to find a way to make this happen anyway, and there's nothing we can do tonight. We can find somewhere to sleep for everyone tonight and we'll deal with this and everyone and sorting out rooms and everything in the morning.
May- Li started walking around to take everybody's coats. By this time everyone- even those who should have been asleep hours ago stood in the hallway having been woken up and pulled downstairs by someone shouting.
"I said I don't care about this Derek!" A dark- haired girl I had already forgotten the name of told the elder man. "Another care home another care worker, another place whatever! You all just care for us because you get paid for it anyway!" Derek tried to interrupt. "Oh you just shut up Derek! I said I don't care. I can't wait 'til I'm sixteen so I can leave this goddamn place anyway. Watch it!" she had walked into the younger boy… Xavier or whatever his name was.
"Kim." Derek pulled the dark haired girl- obviously named Kim aside and even though none of us could see what he did to her we all heard- "SMACK" He must have slapped her and I saw Mike go first pale white- and then bright red as he stomped through the hallway and up to Derek- we still couldn't see them but Mike didn't do anything for us not to hear what he said.
"You may be my friend Derek Kent. But you are now under my roof and under MY rules. And my rules are simple and one of them is to NEVER hurt anyone. If I EVER see or hear you touching a kid again you WILL be OUT of here. DO you UNDERSTAND?" We heard some mumbling. "I SAID DO YOU UNDERSTAND?" More mumbling, and when the three came back Kim held her hand towards her cheek, Mike looked furious and most of the children- Ashdene Ridge's and Derek and Jessa's tried to step away from Derek.
"So…" Derek said after several seconds of silence. "If it is at least for tonight…. Is there somewhere everyone can sleep?" The room went silent- and I could understand- Ashdene Ridge was full as it was and with six kids and two adults coming in at one time getting them in would take quite a squeeze. I looked to Mike who seemed to think so hard I could almost hear what, but before he had said anything May- Li had gotten an idea.
"Do you know what we should do?" She looked around. "We should gather all the mattresses, quilts, blankets, stuffed animals and pillows that we can find and then spread it out in the living room and sleep just- wherever we can find a place except for on sofas or on beds."
"We can't put that many girls and boys in the same room May- Li!"
"Oh come on, just one night won't do any harm! And I guess… I guess we could just use the whole house. Let everyone take each mattress and pillow and blanket and whatever else they need if they need anything. And they can go… a bit of everywhere except for on a sofa or on a bed or in their own room and then just… let the imagination set the boundaries."
"Okay then." Mike said after a few seconds of thinking. "But then you keep away from people's private rooms. And there will be an adult awake at all times checking so no one is doing anything that would be inappropriate." I made a happy gesture towards Trenton. "May- Li, Derek, Jessa, can you three come with me into the office for a minute."
"Ehrm. Mike?" I suddenly thought of something. "I'm not supposed to go into my room yet."
"Oh well… I have about twenty five of these blow- up mattresses." He spoke loud so everyone would hear. "I'll go and get them and you other go and find covers and pillows and find yourself a place, and then tomorrow morning, we will wake everyone up at nine and everyone will have the day off school so we can sort out all the rooms and everything. I'll call up all your teachers tomorrow."
The cheering when Mike said everybody could skip school was loud before everyone started moving upstairs and towards the living room to get every blanket and every pillow they could possibly find. I and Trenton went to get the things from his room and then walked through the kitchen and into the laundry room where we sat down to wait for Mike to come with the mattresses.
Gone were the plans of telling Mike and May- Li about what we were allergic to! And all the things that had happened just a minute ago when I had told Trenton what I had almost done when I first found out I was pregnant.
And I and Trenton waited…
And waited
And waited
And at last we both woke up on the floor, every single part of both of our bodies aching of sleeping on the floor.
"Oh, there was someone in there?" May- Li stood passing out boxes with cereal by the breakfast table when I and Trenton came limping out of the laundry room. "Did you guys get mattresses?" I and Trenton shook our heads. "I knew I hadn't counted wrong, wait here guys… you can have some breakfast if you can find somewhere to sit. MIKE" She walked out of the kitchen and I and Trenton looked to each other and then around the kitchen.
One of the younger boys that had arrived last night lied on the kitchen bench, the other one of the younger boys on the kitchen island still sleeping. The blonde boy with a roundish face sat talking to Johnny about something and Johnny seemed to mostly want to jump up on his feet and run away. Around the table sat Bailey, Carmen and Tee- Bailey sighing about Carmen and Tee talking about make up.
"Kenny." Johnny jumped onto his feet when I came even though there were several free spots by the table. "Here, come and sit by Michael. You too Trenton!" Before any of us could protest Michael had looked so pleading to us with his blue eyes none of us could say no and Johnny walked closer to me.
"He kept me up all night with his babbling about ice cream and how being here is like a long sleepover. The guy's…" He made a move to show that he meant that the boy wasn't all right in the head and I wasn't so sure what to think about it.
Although I couldn't say anything, if I did I would have to tell everyone about my mum and my whole story before I came. And while Johnny ran for all he was worth I sat down by the boy and Trenton on the other side of me.
"Hey bud. What's your name?"
"I'm Michael." Michael smiled at us. "The same name as the guy who works here although me you call by full name. Who are you?" With shining blue eyes he looked from me to Trenton and then back to me.
"I'm Kenny and this is my friend Trenton." Michael smiled so hard his eyes peered and turned to his cereal and milk with… well it was actually more like cereal with something that looked like it was frozen but I couldn't quite make up my mind what it actually was. "What is that?"
"It's frozen milk and cereal." Michael smiled again. "I didn't want to leave our old care home yesterday, so Derek promised me that if I just came he'd give me a whole box with snickers ice cream cones. I didn't get any but he told me that if I put milk and cereal in the freezer it would be almost like ice cream."
"Was he right?" Michael nodded happily and took another spoon of the milk- ice cream and then put his hand to his head with brain freeze. "Oh, ouch… whoa… Trenton I gotta go get that Zofran." I quickly stood up, just as Mike came into the room and held up the box. "Oh thanks Mike."
"You're welcome. I heard that you two slept without mattresses tonight!" I and Trenton nodded and Mike distressed rubbed his chin. "What am I supposed to do with you two?" He sighed. "Oh well, I think almost everyone should be awake by now so I'll get the rest and then we'll start to sort out rooms and everything… speaking about rooms I think it's time for you to get to see your room"
I decided that I did not want the whole damn care home to be there waiting for my reactions, so just us three I, Trenton and Mike walked up to my room and Mike held his hands over my eyes and led me into the room while I could hear Trenton opening the door before I finally got to see what the others had been doing as Mike took his hands away from my face.
"Awesome!" Was the only thing I could say looking around. "Oh this is just… wow!" I walked over and sat down in the arm chair that Mike had brought here- even though it was kind of old and ragged, and the leather was broken at many places it couldn't have been more perfect for my room just as everything else and I stood up again and walked over to a plaque.
"All you need is love…" I read out loud from it. "Wow! There's no way that you guys could have known!"
"Known what?"
"My mum… she's obsessed with that song and we always used to call it our song and… And I'm really hungry I need to go and eat breakfast." I almost ran out of the room and pushed away the thoughts about my mum.
This was the first time I had mentioned her to any of the people at Elm Tree House.
As I sat in the kitchen fingering with a cheese sandwich more and more people started gathering, some of them had already woken up fully, and had gotten dressed and everything. While some others came in PJ's with their hair messy and barely seemed awake enough to sit up straight by the table- or by the kitchen bench or wherever they could find a place.
"So…" A bit later Mike and Derek came into the room again when everyone sat around the kitchen. "It's time to start sorting out the rooms. So… Well… Is there anyone who has already made one friend and want to… Yes Jody?"
"Can I and Belle share?"
"I don't know Jodes…. Your room is the smallest one we might not fit another bed into it." Jody thought for a second, and I could see Belle crossing her fingers for them to get a yes.
"But what if we use a bunk bed then? Please Mike please!" Jody was jumping up and down to kind of show that she really, really wanted this and lit up when Mike nodded at her. "YAY… Can I sleep on top?"
"I don't want to sleep on top!" Belle said. "I wouldn't want to fall down."
"Okay then… but be careful then Jody. If you fall down or anyone else that bunk bed's going out of the house. So… Anyone else who wants to share with anyone in certain? Yes, Michael?" Michael was waving and waving and raising his hand like in school.
"Can I share with Johnny? Please, please, please…" He continued his pleading even though Mike tried to silent him. And I could also see Johnny was hoping Mike would say no.
"Johnny what do you say?" Johnny gave Mike a meaning glare. "Come on Johnny. You're only here for a few more months and such and we all need to work for this to go together." Johnny sighed and made a gesture that alright then. "Okay, then yes Michael. You can share with Johnny."
"YAY." Michael's shout was undeniable and he didn't seem to notice that Johnny moaned loudly when Michael threw his arms around him and squeezed him in a tight hug. "What are you writing Kim?" He turned to the dark haired girl that sat with a diary and a pencil.
"Nothing you need to mind about." She said quite rudely and Mike was on his way of saying something. "You know- Mike or whatever your name was. I thought of it when everyone was talking about how to sort the rooms out and everything… I know that there actually isn't any room for all of us here but… there is this Swedish expression.. It says if there's room for heart than there's room for ass."
"I don't get what that means!" One of the brown- haired boys that had come last night said and Kim turned to him with an expression on her face that definitely did not mean she was going to be a smidge of nice to him.
"Well Xavier. Then I guess Swedes are smarter than you are!"
This time Derek didn't even mind leaving the room, he stomped over to Kim, pulled her onto her feet and before anyone of us- Mike the least had had the time to pull him away from her he had slapped her, right across her cheek and so hard she lost her balance and fell right into Rick's lap.
This time it was Mike's time to stomp, and he stomped right over to Derek and grabbed him by the shirt. "I told you I did not want any of that in my house. I WANT YOU OUT OF HERE. And if I ever see you here again I WILL CALL THE POLICE. DO YOU UNDERSTAND?" Derek tried to mumble something and Mike grabbed him by the shirt again and pulled him out of the room.
We could hear Mike and Derek talking, but still the room seemed all quiet until we heard footsteps, yet only one pair coming closer and Mike came into the room. "I'm sorry that you all had to see this. But just so you all know, Derek is staying for now but if he ever hits anyone or does something mean to any of you I want you to come to me okay?" He looked around with a look that hold us exactly how serious he was about it.
"Where is he now?" The Latino boy asked.
"He's in the office doing some paper work." Mike grabbed a paper and a pencil from the kitchen bench and scrabbled something down. "So it's Belle and Jody, and Michael and Johnny, Kazima and Carmen and Rick and Tyler already shares so I don't think we can fit in anyone else in their rooms. So for Kim that leaves sharing with either Floss, Tee or Kenny.
"Oh, no, no, no, no, no!" Kim exclaimed with pressure in her voice. "I am NOT sharing room with a girl… not a chance in hell I am not doing it!" She looked like she was going to continue but Mike held up his hands and she seemed somewhat scared backing away from him.
"Oh, oh, oh. It's okay I'm not going to hurt you, I just wanted you to stop talking. I was going to say that I actually don't think we have that much of a choice so… sorry kiddo!" Kim sighed and looked around. "Well… I think Tee here, or Kenny…" He pointed to me. "Would be the best options considering you three are around the same edge so… Well… how would you two feel about sharing?"
"Actually Mike… I have things a bit spread out all over my room right now and it might take me a couple of days to get it all up and away enough to fit another bed into the room." Mike laughed and looked at me. Seeming to think that I would never say yes.
"I wouldn't mind." Mike breathed out and did some gesture to Kim towards me. "I mean….. if there's room for ass in the house then I bet there's room for two people in my room. And at day- time I don't spend too much time in my room anyway."
Mike only jokily glared at me and didn't comment, although one of the younger boys that had come with Derek and Jessa laughed so he shook, and caught both my attention and as it seemed everybody else's.
"That was funny!"
"I'm not so sure… what's your name?"
"I'm Xavier." The boy said. "But some people who can't pronounce it call me Dean, because that's my middle name. What is your name?"
"I'm Kenny, J- Just Kenny." For a moment I had been close on continuing and saying my middle name as well, and if there was something I wouldn't need today it was all the paper work there would need once Mike would ask something about my middle name that would have to be done when I had first said that and then I'd need and tell him everything else- not to talk about everything that would happen when someone called my mum, and none of us needed that work in all of this- or ever!
"You've got to have a last name!" Belle stated. "All people have a last name." I hesitated, and tried to act like both Mike, Trenton, Johnny and Tee had silent and were all looking to me, while Belle mostly seemed silent on why even Jody weren't talking to her anymore waiting for me to answer.
"Not me!" I heard myself state, kind of forced and a clear lie. "I'm just Kenny…" Johnny started asking something. "And no more questions." I forced myself to look kind of miserable. "I don't want to talk about it okay?" The others had silent again and the thing was- thinking about my mum I didn't have to try and look miserable- I felt miserable anyway!
"So well…" Mike started talking again. "All of the girls' rooms are sorted and that means Tee and Floss will still get to have their own rooms." Tee didn't seem to mind much, while Floss happily boxed in the air. "Michael moves into Johnny's room… that leaves Xavier, you…" He pointed to the other young brown- haired boy. "You." He pointed to the Latino boy. "And… Oh look at that! It's only you three left. And the rooms that there are only one boy living in are… Trenton's Harry's, Mo's and Bailey's. So in the end there are going to be Floss, Tee and one of the boys still having their own rooms."
"And that boy's going to be me." Bailey stated. "I don't do sharing rooms!" Mike made a gesture that that part actually wasn't decided yet but Bailey wasn't in the mood to listen and stood up and started crossing in between chairs to walk out of the crowd. "I'll go in the yard and play football." Then he was out of the room before Mike had made him stay and Mike made some notes again.
"So well…" He noted something more. "I think what is most important right now, is to know stuff like if any of you gets seizures or allergic reactions to anything or anything like that. So… can anyone who are allergic to something, both you new ones and everyone else, raise their hands." I looked to Trenton and remembered the conversation we had had about this last night while both I and he raised our hands.
"Kenny? Trenton?" May- Li looked kind of surprised to the both of us. "Why have you not told us about this? Are you two like severely allergic to something?" I looked to Trenton and hesitated, then we both nodded. "You have both been here for days, why did it take so much time for you to tell us this when we should have known this the minute you came here? What are you allergic to? And what happens?"
"Ehrm…" I ended up being kind of ashamed that I hadn't told them about this. "We do both get anaphylactic chocks, Trenton's allergic to peanuts and I'm allergic seafood- including both shellfish and fish." Mike sighed and I quickly continued. "Look, whatever you're thinking Trenton's already told me and I'm sorry. But I just never got around to tell you."
"It's okay… well we need to move on, is there anybody who is so severely allergic they'd react if we bring it into the house?" The room fell silent. "Well that's good. Okay… well, if you could just tell me everything in food- way what you're allergic to now so we'll make sure none of it would be served then I will later bring you one and one into the office and take up these stuff. Including you two." He pointed to me and Trenton. "Because obviously there are things that we should that we haven't gotten to know."
"Well…" May- Li started. "We have all of the girls' rooms sorted out so until we have all the boys' rooms, I don't think there is much we could do so if all of you boys that already have rooms can just go up to your room and where you girls go and everything doesn't really matter until we have sorted out the boys' rooms, and you Xavier and Jeremy and Alfie just walk around to the boys' rooms and see which one you befriend and which room you like the most."
I didn't really know what else to do, and I had a bit of drawing things still in Trenton's room anyway so we two walked up to his room and I sat down on the floor and he on his bed and we… well… hung out in our own way- him reading about the Beatles, and me sketching on some outfit turned away so he couldn't see what I was drawing.
"Oh…" Suddenly Xavier came through the door and I flinched when he started talking. "Oh wow. Those stars that light up in the dark! Those are so awesome!" He looked around. "Your name was Trenton right?" Trent nodded. "And you were Kenny, but this can't be your room because boys and girls aren't allowed to share."
"That's right! But if I could I'd share with him. Trenton's my best friend." Xavier nodded and looked around the room. And he was silent for another moment before he turned to Trenton and without a single hint of shyness he asked what I had pretty much known since he came in here that he would.
"Can I share room with you Trenton?"
"Yeah sure." Trenton nodded. "If you want."
"Yeah, this room is awesome. whose bed is that?" He pointed to the tent bed that had been put in here when we still thought that I and Trenton would be sharing room in an actual bedroom. And Trenton answered him that no one had that bed. "Oh cool, then it can be mine?" Xavier jumped up and started jumping on it before he threw himself down. "It's so soft and I can even jump on it."
"Okay." I laid the papers and pencils on the floor and crawled onto my feet. "I think we'd better go find Mike then. Or maybe I could and you two just get to know each other." Trenton nodded. "Okay, I'll go find him then!" Walking out of the room I could hear his voice from upstairs and jogged two stairs at the time up to the second floor just as Tyler came from the other direction and called for Mike's attention too.
"Mike, can we share three people in the same room?"
"Yeah, if you can fit three people in your room then I couldn't see why not!"
"Cool, then Alfie shares with Tyler and Rick…" Mike noted something more. "Only Jeremy left to find a room for then… where is he by the way? I haven't seen him for a long while!" Mike started walking but I stopped his way and looked at him to show. "Oh right, Xavier is left too. What did you want Kenny?"
"Xavier shares with Trenton. And to him that tent bed you put in for me is awesome. So you don't need to worry too much more about that. And if it helps I haven't seen Jeremy since I saw him walk out in the yard, and Bailey walked there too so maybe they're playing football or something." I turned around but jumped when suddenly a small person was standing behind me. "Whoa! Oh sorry Belle… and who is this?" I kneeled and took a closer look at Belle's stuffed leopard.
"This is Rosa." Belle pressed the stuffed animal's soft nose towards her cheek. "And Rosa is my best friend. Kim told me Rosa means pink in Swedish- that's why I named her that! I really like pink. Do you like pink?"
"I… Yeah it's a nice color. Not my favourite but it's nice…" I stood up when I saw Jessa come out of the kitchen and look around as if she was looking for something. "Sorry Belle I just gotta…" I half ran down the stairs and over to Jessa. "Are you looking for something? Is there something I could help you with?"
"Ehrm…" Jessa seemed insecure. "It might seem kind of silly but… do you know where I can find a pen and a paper? It doesn't really matter what kind or anything just something to write with and something to write on." I let hear a short laugh and showed her into the living room where I pulled out a block of papers and a box with pencils. "Thanks ehrm…"
"Kenny… I've got to go… I think Mike wanted me to help find Jeremy." I half ran out of the living room and towards the back yard where I found Bailey and Jeremy, and the next time I saw them after telling Mike about where I found them Bailey was loudly explaining to Mike on why he wasn't supposed to share with anyone.
"Bailey, Bailey, Bailey." At last Mike stopped and held up his hands. "I'm sorry, but there's a bit much right now and the thing is I think your room is the best option because you and Jeremy share your interests and everything so I really think that it will be the best. And with getting all of those new residents all at once we all need to give and take. So for now I think that it's for the best that you and Jeremy share, you'll get used to it okay?"
After more or less running around for anyone and everyone and not having one moment to sit down in all of it I was starting to feel kind of dizzy, although I had to just shake it off and go on as I heard from inside the toy cupboard and it almost sounded like someone sobbing.
"Oh, hey Jeremy." I kneeled by the lowest shelf in which Jeremy sat with a block of paper and some pencils, although I had mistaken his coughing for sobbing. "What are you drawing?" I tried to look at what he was drawing but he held it so I couldn't see it. "Oh. I can't see it, can I?" He nodded towards the door and I closed it. "What?"
"Please don't tell anybody I like to draw okay?" He asked me. "I just like it, but drawing is actually only for girls so I don't want anyone to know that I like it!" What he said threw me off- and I told him I knew loads of boys who liked drawing. "Well I don't want people to know anyway, so please don't tell anyone."
"Okay, I won't." I told him the second before I heard someone shouting for Jeremy. "Okay, come on. Hide it there and no one will find it." I helped him hide his drawing things and then walked out to the others again finding that several old beds had been found in the attic and was being pieced together so all the new ones could have their own beds.
"So…." Mike made sure we all- including himself, May- Li, Derek and Jessa came into the kitchen again. "Jeremy shares with Bailey, Xavier with Trenton, Alfie with Tyler and Rick, Belle with Jody, Kim with Kenny and Michael with Johnny." Johnny moaned. "Kazima and Carmen share since before, so that means Mo, Tee, Harry and Floss still have their own rooms. Now I want you all to make the very best of this and try to have it work out because if this doesn't work out with the sharing I wouldn't…"
"I wouldn't have to share with anyone here if I could just move into that what's it called… House of hope or whatever it's called where Rowan got to move in." Alfie interrupted Mike.´. "I mean what part of the British law tells that I'm not allowed to move in into the same care home as my sister?" The room fell silent, and Derek- even though he was a lot calmer than the last time after Mike glared at him and pulled Alfie with him. "Oh no! You can say it in here!"
"Alfie… You know why you and… Rowan can't be in the same house…"
"But it's not fair!" Alfie protested. "I would never do those things to her!"
"Not fair?" Bailey's voice told me he was coming with some comment again. "Oh wow! Now we're being mature aren't we? How old are you actually? And come on- whoever that Rowan is she'll probably be better off without you."
Alfie had had enough at that one line- and Bailey had taken it way too far. Alfie jumped over the table and before anyone else had had the time to react he had bene flying on Bailey and a wild fight blew up in between the two boys.
I had been standing right next to Bailey, and despite the fact that my whole world was spinning around because I Was so dizzy I could think enough to know that I had to step away or I would be hurt. But with how dizzy I was I must have stepped in the wrong direction and was hit my Bailey's shoulder right in the chest.
And the last thing I could remember was that I hadn't even hit the floor before everything went black.
So… that's it! I was going to continue but I think it makes it with a cliffhanger there. Oh and- that expression- if there's room for heart there's room for ass, yep it is real! "Finns det hjärterum så finns det stjärterum" we say.
Did anyone guess that my favorite line in this chapter was "Well Xavier. Then I guess Swedes are smarter than you are!" ?
See you next time!