Chapter Six: New Beginnings
I wake up and Molly was driving up a driveway. The townhouse she pulled up was Victorian, much like half of London. In the small garden in the front yard, she grew roses, ranging from deep red to pure white. Molly walked up to the house and grabbed the key to open the black wooden door. I followed her once I was out of the car. She opened the door and a small cat came to the door.
"Hello Toby" she cooed. Toby was a small grey creature. He had white paws and green eyes. "This is Clara, she will be living here now with us." She told him. Toby strolled towards me, and began to walk in between my legs, rubbing himself up on my legs. I bent down to his level and stroked his petite head.
"He seems to be warming up to you quickly," Molly said. She had been watching me with Toby, looking at me oddly. "He has never warmed up to anyone that quickly before. You must be special." Molly added, smiling.
"I guess so." I replied. I stood up again, stretching my legs and arms.
"Follow me Clara" Molly said, placing her bag on the dining table and walking towards a set of stairs. Before I did, I took note of how the downstairs area was set out. The living room and dining room were adjacent to each other and the kitchen was facing them both. A desk was in the corner of the living room, almost out of sight due to a small wall. Papers were all over it. I guessed it was Molly's small office. The whole area was really tidy, besides Molly's office. I walked towards the stairs and noted that there was a small cupboard at the bottom of it. I stopped. It had a small grate on it. I turn towards it and grab the small handle, opening to a cleaning closet. It had chemicals and cleaning appliances throughout it. I had seen one of these before, but I can't remember where.
"Clara? You okay?" Molly yelled from upstairs.
"Yeah, I'm fine, I'm coming up now." I close the door and jog up the stairs. As I reach the top, a door opens, Molly walks out in jeans and a nice top. She has changed out of her clothes from before.
"Okay so I'll just give you a quick tour of upstairs before I go to the shop okay?" She said. I hear a jingling of a small bell and turn to see Toby had followed me upstairs.
"Can I pick him up?" I ask
"Oh of course you can sweetie." Molly said, "I'll show you how to hold him."
Molly walks up to me and squats down to pick up Toby. She shows me how to hold him so he is comfortable. She hands him to me and I hold him tight. He snuggles into my shoulder and purrs as I pat him soothingly.
"Okay, now the room I just came out of before is my room, the room directly across it is the guest bedroom, which is now your room." She said, walking across the hallway and opening the door. The room held a double bed, which has crisp clean sheets on it; a bedside table next to it and in the far corner of the room was a desk, with a chair tucked neatly underneath.
"Wow, this is really great Molly." I say, turning to face her. "Thank you so much for taking me in. I know it must be a little bit of a responsibility." I added, holding Toby with one arm, I pull Molly into a quick hug. "Thank you so much." I say again. I readjust Toby in my arms.
"Don't mention it Clara, I couldn't leave you with the police. Something in my gut just told me I had to care for you." She says, reaching for the door handle and closing the door. "Now the room down there is the bathroom and next to it is the loo." She said, pointing to the doors that matched the name. "The cupboard at the end of the hall is the linen press, which as towels and sheets in it." She added. "That's all that's up here, now I'm going to go to the shops to grab some food and clothes for you. Are jeans and plain tops okay? I will grab you a jumper and shoes too." She remarked. I nod in response. "Okay feel free to have a shower, there are towels in the linen press and there is a bathrobe on the back of the bathroom door you can use until I get you some clothes" She reminded me.
"Okay, thank you Molly."
"Okay blossom, I will be back soon okay, there is a phone on the side board near the kitchen, I will ring it if I need to talk to you. See you soon." She said, grabbing her handbag and car keys before walking out the door and locking to shut. I put Toby back down and trot on back upstairs to have a shower. I grab a blue towel from shelf in the cupboard. I enter the bathroom and see how clean it is. I open the shower door and turn it on, the water giving me a fright on how fast it shoots out of the showerhead. I adjust the temperature before stripping off my hospital gown and jumping into the shower. The warm water hushed my aching muscles. I washed myself with the shower gel, the smell of lavender filling the bathroom. I see some shampoo and conditioner. Hoping Molly won't mind, I wash my hair. The greasy feeling was wiped from me. Only a few minutes after I get in, I turn off the water and get out, drying myself with the towel. As soon as I was dry, I wrapped my body in the bathrobe that was on the back of the door. I vigorously rub the damp towel through my hair, hoping it would dry it a little. I walk out if the bathroom and down to the living room, sitting down on the couch. Toby wanders in and jumps up onto the couch next to me.
"Hey there Toby" I whisper, stroking his head. "I don't know if Molly allows you on the couch, but I won't tell her" I add. I begin to stare into space. Wondering how Molly could take in a teenage girl who doesn't even know who she is. I snap out of my daze when I hear a shrilling sound of a phone ringing. I swiftly stand up and follow the sound. I find the phone and answer. "Hello?"
"Oh hello Clara, it's just Molly, listen, I have some clothes here for you, I just want to know if you are okay for me to buy you a coat as well?" She asked.
"You don't have to Molly, put of you think it will help me in anyway, you can. I just don't want you spend a lot of money."
"Honey don't worry about money, I just want to get you something to make you feel welcome and get you started. I will be another 20 minutes okay?"
"Okay, this might be a silly question, but how long have you been gone?" I ask.
"About 20 minutes why? Has something happened?" She asked, I could tell I'm scaring her.
"No, thing has happened, I was just wondering."
"Okay, I will be home soon, don't fret. I've got to go now and pay for these clothes. Bye sweetie."
"Bye Molly." I hang up the phone and connect it back up with the charger. I walk back to the living room when out of my eye, I see a grand bookshelf. I walk up towards it, seeing what seems like hundreds of books stacked neatly on the shelves. Many of them are medical books, but I see a few that aren't. I kneel down so I can read the titles. That's when something in my head clicked.
"Harry Potter and The Philosopher's Stone" was written on the spine of a think book. I remembered now where I had seen a cupboard under the stairs. I remember reading these books and watching these movies. I loved them. My entire childhood was surrounded with this fantasy world. I picked it out of the shelf and eagerly began to read. Hoping that it would jog my memory, unlocking things about myself that I want to know.