Hello again, I hope you guys liked my first chapter. I know there are plenty of stories about Leo's time before the Wilderness School, but golly it's so interesting to write! (Did I really just use golly in a sentence?) Seriously, it is pretty cool to do. Anyway, I really hope this chapter is good! Sorry it's so short, I just felt like it should stop at the point it did. Thanks so much to those of you who reviewed last chapter! As always, read, review, and enjoy!

Eight.

She was a young lady.

Her eyes were icy blue and sharp. Her hair, which was a silky pale yellow, was tied back in a loose ponytail. What had mama called hair like hers?

Blonde.

She had introduced herself as Dr. Laurence. Her voice was stronger than her appearance. It was confident, and intelligent, but not too strong. Not strong enough to be intimidating. Leo had almost decided to like her from the moment he saw her, but then he held himself back. He wouldn't trust these people. They lied.

Joe lied. He said they would stop asking if I told them I was scared. He said so. He said.

She was sitting in a little chair at a little table. It was red and yellow and reminded him of his sixth birthday party, the one where his mama had invited Giggles the clown. She had also invited a lot of her family, more than she usually did. Aunt Rosa had been there with her son Raphael. Some of mama's cousins, too. But Leo mostly remembered his tía. She yelled at him that day, yelled at him for putting his elbows on the table, a table like this one. Then she had curled her lip and whispered so his mom couldn't hear, "Aprenda algunos modales bastardo sucio." She hadn't even brought a present.

"Leo. Did you hear me?" Leo jumped, startled back from the past by Dr. Laurence and her sweet yet steady voice. "I said you can sit down over here." She gestured to the other colorful plastic chairs surrounding the table. A tan teddy bear lay on its side near the plastic foot of one of the chairs. Leo sat on that chair. It was blue.

He placed his hands in his lap and looked around the room. It was painted baby blue, and it was soothing. Toys of various sizes were scattered around the room and in plastic bins. There were two bookcases against the left wall. They were filled with books, probably children's books. A few of them had been left on the foam puzzle piece floor. Leo looked to his right and saw a crescent shaped sofa. It looked very poofy. He felt the urge to jump on it. A week earlier, he would have done it in a heartbeat. But he was too tired to do that, now. Too tired.

"How are you feeling, Leo?" Dr. Laurence asked. Leo shrugged. He tapped his fingers against the table rhythmically. He found himself beginning to tap in Morse code.

"You?"

Dr. Laurence smiled. "I'm doing alright. This morning I was a little tired, but I'm better now. What about you? Are you tired?"

Leo looked at the sofa again and swallowed slowly. He shrugged.

"You couldn't have gotten much sleep on that hard cot."

Leo sniffed and shifted in his tiny seat. He wondered if most eight year olds could fit in the same chair, or if most of them had to sit on the sofa. Leo was small, and he knew it. He looked like a baby. That was what cousin Marco, who was ten, called him. Bebé. That and mopa cabeza were Marco's favorite nicknames for Leo. Leo wasn't even sure if Marco was his cousin. He lived with Aunt Rosa and cousin Raphael, but he wasn't her son. Leo wondered if Marco disliked her as much as he himself did.

"Leo. I'd like to talk about your mother. Is that alright?"

Leo's dark eyes rolled to look at her. He didn't blink.

"What was her name?"

"Her name." Leo began his, voice growing angry. "Is Esperanza Valdez."

Dr. Laurence blinked. Had she told Leo her first name? He felt that she had. He couldn't remember it, though. It had been the name of a flower. Rose? Violet?

"What did she look like, Leo?" Her voice was very soft, very kind. Lily. Her name was Lily.

Leo's lips twitched, trying to smile. "Her eyes are pretty. They're brown like chocolate. And her skin is my color, only a little darker. Her hair is crazy. It's even fluffier than mine is, it sticks out unless she uses mousse. She tried to use it on me once." Leo giggled, surprising himself. "She said I looked like a greaser."

"She sounded very beautiful. What did she like to wear?"

Leo's smile faded and his eyes narrowed slightly.

What did she wear. What did she look like. What was her name.

Did. Was. Did. Was. Did. Was. Di-

"She loved her overalls." Leo said without thinking. He thought he saw a spark in Lily's eyes, a spark of pleasure, of accomplishment, and Leo's own eyes grew huge.

"Loves." He growled. "She loves them."

"Leo, why do you do that?"

"Do what?"

"Why do you speak as if your mother is still here? We've lost her, Leo. She's gone to heaven."

we?

We?

WE?

We've lost her? We? Have we, lily? Have we lost her? Mama is fine, I haven't lost anybody, you're the crazy one Miss Lily, you're the one who needs a padded room and a straight jacket and loony medicine because my mama isn't in heaven, she isn't flying with angels, she's down here with me, she's

Burning

"Leo, do you know the meaning of the word denial?" Lily asked. Leo realized he had been staring at his hands and looked at her pale eyes instead. His mouth tasted like batteries.

"Yes." He began, his voice hard. "You're in it."

"Me?"

"Yes, you. You're in denial. You think mama's dead, but she's not and you're crazy."

"Leo your mother passed away in the fire. She's-"

"Don't!" Leo hissed, standing so quickly from his plastic blue chair that it flipped over. "Don't talk. Stop talking. I don't want to talk to you anymore. You're a liar. You're all liars."

The doctor in the ambulance, Officer Cruz, Joe; liars. All liars.

Leo quickly shuffled toward the sofa, looking over his shoulder to make sure Lily wasn't following. She wasn't, but she was watching him. Her expression seemed sad. Pitying.

She feels bad for me.

He walked over to the left side of the sofa and sat behind it next to the baby blue wall. He was out of sight, now. He pulled his legs up to his chest; a motion he seemed to be doing often. He rested his head on his knees and covered his eyes with his arms. Perfect.

He heard Lily stand and walk over to him. He tensed as he waited for her to put a hand on his shoulder or try to hug him, but she didn't. She sat on the sofa and sighed.

"I just need you to tell me how you're feeling, Leo. If you can do that, I'll stop asking about your mom. Okay? Deal?"

Leo paused.

Then he called out from his arms, "Deal."

"How do you feel? I mean, really. Are you tired?"

Leo nodded his head.

"Are you feeling sad?"

Leo shook his head no.

"Angry?"

No.

"Scared?"

No.

Lily paused. "Are you feeling nothing? Do you feel empty?"

Leo didn't nod his head, but he didn't shake it either. He wasn't sure if that was it. Was that it? Did he feel empty? Did he feel nothing at all?

He decided to nod his head.

"I just want you to know that this is perfectly normal. You're allowed to feel this way, and you shouldn't feel guilty. Have you been having nightmares?"

Leo nodded his head vigorously. He opened his eyes, as when they were closed he began to picture flames.

"Yeah." He croaked.

"Do they wake you up?"

"I don't know. It could be that, or the fact that I haven't slept in a real bed in days."

"Don't worry, Leo. We'll take care of that."

"Will you let me go home?" Leo asked, a glimmer of hope shining in his eyes.

"Leo." Lily started, and Leo knew what she would say. "I'm very sorry, Leo, but you can't. You're going to be placed with a family that will take care of you."

Leo released a small sigh. "Yeah."

"What do you think of that, Leo?"

"I don't like it." Leo said, and suddenly he felt as if he would cry. His feelings were coming back, they were rushing back and they hurt. "I don't wanna leave my home with mama. I want to stay." He cried. He sniffed hard, trying to hold back his snot and tears.

"I'm scared."

Lily put a warm hand on Leo's curly head of hair.

"It's okay to be scared, Leo. And I understand that you're confused, I know that you're nervous about what's to come next. But if you have any questions, I'll answer them if I can."

"What's gonna happen to me?"

"Well." Lily began. "First we're going to see if any family members are able to take you in. If they aren't, then your social worker will find you a nice home with very nice people that will take care of you."

"I have lots of family. Someone will take me." Leo said confidently. "Will I get to see mama?"

Lily tilted her head and looked at Leo with an expression of…what? Annoyance?

"Are you angry?" Leo asked softly.

"No. I'm worried."

"Why?"

"We will talk about it later, okay?"

"Okay. Will I get to see mama?

"That." Lily said, a slightly sour expression crossing her face. "Is up to your aunt Rosa."

Leo looked at her with wide eyes and swallowed. His aunt Rosa was going to decide? Tia hated him, he knew it. She hated his bastardo guts. She would keep him away from mama. She would take her away and never let him see her again.

"But…but she hates me." Leo sniffed.

"I'm sure she doesn't hate you, Leo. She's you auntie, she's family."

Tell that to her, Miss Lily.

"You'll see, Leo. She's coming in right now."

Leo's eyes widened. Lily stood from her place on the sofa. She crouched in front of the small boy, who seemed terrified.

"It'll be alright, Leo. She's here to make you feel better. She loves you."

Leo looked into Lily's pale blue eyes and considered it.

Could it be true? Does she love me? Is she going to hug me when she sees me? Is she going to pick me up and sing me a lullaby like mama would?

"Are you ready?" She whispered. Leo groaned slightly and nodded his head. He was terrified. This was where it would be decided; would he see his mama or not? Lily took his hand lightly and pulled him to his feet. Leo clasped her dry hand tighter with his much smaller and much sweatier one.

"Let's go."

Little baby Leo is (*spoiler* kind of) in the first stage of grief, my dear readers, and the fact that he's so young and ignorant only makes it harder for him to understand*. Sigh. So sad, so sad. I'm writing so seriously, it's weird for me. Thanks for reading, please review, it lifts my spirits and helps me write more!