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(Warning: mentions of child abuse)

The Wonders of a New Family

Chapter 2: "I Wish I Was A Normal Teenager..."

I must have fallen asleep because the next thing I knew I heard Anita calling everyone to the dining room for dinner. I rubbed my eyes and put on a jumper. I walked silently downstairs. I could hear everyone else laughing and teasing each other in the dining room. There was an empty seat next to Josh. I pulled out my chair and sat down.

"Want to play football after dinner Alex?" Josh asked me.

"Uh, no thanks, I need to finish my room. Maybe another day?" I didn't want to play football, not right now anyway.

"That's alright." He smiled and turned back to his dinner that had now been put in front of him.

We were having cheese and tomato pizza tonight. Josh told me that they had pizza every Friday. I looked around at the seven children of varying ages happily chatting to one another. They were so normal. Why couldn't I be like that? I thought. I ate all of my pizza and then Anita and another social worker I hadn't met brought us some Angel Delight for our pudding. I remember Jack would make this for me when I was younger, butterscotch was always my favourite. It was chocolate Angel Delight, another of my favourites, one Jack rarely made.

I finished my pudding and I saw that everyone was starting to leave the table. I dashed up the stairs and into my new room. I had a poster of my favourite Chelsea football player – Frank Lampard – that my uncle had given me for my twelfth birthday on my wall next to my bed. I remembered when I had really wanted to be a football star... but that wasn't going to happen now was it?

Walking over to my window I was astonished with the view I was met with. Beautiful, fairytale like rolling hills, a small pond at the back of the house, I could see small orange fish darting about. There was a knock on my door and I spun round to see Josh's head poking round the door.

"Sorry," I told him, thinking he would be upset that I hadn't agreed to play football with him.

"It's alright, you've just moved in." He told me. The windowsill was wide enough for me to sit on so I did and Josh came and sat opposite me. He didn't seem to be fazed by my cold eyes that Ben had told me about. "So, what about you then, if you don't mind me asking?"

"Uh," I wasn't sure what to say. "My parents died when I was about one-years-old, so my uncle looked after me, before he was killed in a car accident. Then my house keeper took over but her Visa ran out. She had to be deported back to America. What about you?" I rattled my story out, though most of it was the truth, I hated lying to people about what really happened, but no one is going to believe that my uncle was a spy and was KIA, which in turn meant me becoming a spy...

"Geez, I didn't expect that. But me; my dad was a drunk. I was about seven when my mum died because of him," He spat the name out as if it was poison. "The when she was gone he started on me. I would come home from school and he would be waiting for me." I saw a tear creeping out the corner of his eye.

"It's alright you don't have to tell me." I told him, I didn't really want to hear anymore nor did I want Josh crying.

"Sorry," he wiped the tear from his eye and looked out of the window.

"Josh!" there was a yell from somewhere down the corridor.

"I'm in Alex's room!" He shouted back. There was a thud of footsteps running down the carpeted landing and Matt burst into the room. I put my hand up in a gesture to say 'hi'.

"Anita said we could go to the river." I saw Josh smile.

"Are you coming Alex?" Matt asked me, smiling.

"Nah, I can see the river from here. I'm not really up to doing anything at the moment." They dashed out the door. A few minutes later I saw them racing across the back garden with a girl who looked younger than them. From what I could see she had long blonde hair that reached her shoulders. I opened my window and could hear them laughing.

I wish I was a normal teenager...

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