Grant was 10 when he first saw Skye cry.

From that initial meeting Grant and Skye became close. Spending each afternoon on the top of their respective towers, talking, their friendship blossomed . Sometimes they would toss the ball back and forth over the fence and sometimes on really rough days, they would lean against the fence and sit in silence.

As the years passed, the tradition continued. Sometimes they couldn't meet. Skye would be off at a new foster home, or Grant would be sick, or there would be a rainy day, but they would always meet back behind the tree. Even after Skye started school when she turned 6, Grant would be waiting at the fence after school, waiting to hear all about her day.

The nuns seemed to find their friendship cute. After they had caught the duo conversing several times, they spoke with The Wards and arranged for the installment of a gate between the two yards. The look of delight on the children's faces was enough to quell any fears the Ward's had about Grant hanging out with Skye.

Following the installation of the gate, after school playtime consisted of games of hide and seek, tag, and sometimes monkey in the middle with Thomas. Friday afternoons, after playing for a while, they would lay in the grass and stare up at the sky. The Friday before Ward's eleventh birthday they sat and stared at the clouds as they waited for Grant's mother to call them in for cake.

Grant had noticed Skye wringing her hands together, and her gaze darting between Grant and the gate. He had sensed her anxiety since she had stepped through the gate. He didn't want to be rude, and instead waited for Skye to explain what was making her anxious.

"Grant?" Grant smiled inwardly, he knew Skye well enough to know she couldn't keep anything from him

"Yea Skye?" The girl sat up from the grass, grasping nervously at the stalks. Grant sat up as well, his brows arched in concerned. Something big was bothering Skye. "Everything okay?" He reached out to take her hand but Skye pulled back, still avoiding his gaze.

"How does it feel?" it was so soft Grant had to strain to hear,

"How does what feel?" Skye finally looks up at him, tears gathering in her eyes,

"To have a mommy and a daddy that love you? People that want you? A family?" He voice cracked at the last word. Tears were freely streaming down her face. Grant moved closer and wrapped an arm around the crying girl. Skye leaned in closer. Grant could feel her whisper against his chest,

"I heard the nuns talking today. They were calling me a hopeless case. Too many problems. They said nobody would want me." Grant brought her closer, squeezing her for comfort. He had never had seen her cry before, he'd heard her that first day, but now he could give her comfort, make her feel a bit better.

"Now that's not true. You're not hopeless. You're awesome and cool and funny. Anybody would be lucky to have you as their kid. Anyone who says otherwise is stupid." Grant could feel the tension lessen in the girls small frame. She had stopped crying.

"Thank you Grant."

Grants mother called them in for cake and they stood. Skye wiped her face on her sleeve and followed Grant inside, smile plastered on her face. Grant noticed that the usual sparkle in her eye was dim. He made a promise to himself that as long as he was friends with Skye, he would make it his mission to make the girl happy.

After they finished eating Grant escorted Skye back to the gate. She thanked Grant for the food and went to open the gate before Grant stopped her,

"We love you Skye. Tommy loves you, my mom and dad love you. You are loved, don't forget that. Well be here for you no matter what." The girl rushed up to Grant and hugged him tight. She whispered Thank You and then she was gone. Grant listened for the creak of the door and then went back inside.

Grant was 11 when he enrolled in public school.

After Grant's father successful run for senate, his parents had decided to enroll him into middle school. His first day of 6th grade he was terribly lost. A group of 8th graders watched him as he tried to match the numbers on his schedule to the room numbers on the wall. His cheeks flushed pink when he heard them laughing behind him,

"Lance, go help the poor boy!" a pretty blonde girl spoke, talking to the boy next to her. The boy snorted,

"And ruin all the fun Bob?" Grant was a little surprised at the British accent that came out of the cowboy hat wearing boy. The girl shot him a look and crossed her arms. He sighed and made his way over to Grant. "Where ya headed?" Grant looked down at the paper in front of him and read off the first period,

"History with Ms. Carter." Lance gave a grunt of laughter and turned back to his friends,

"Did you hear that? He's got Carter first!" The older kids moved closer to study his schedule and Grant took an inadvertent step back. The girl held out her hand for the schedule and smiled when Grant handed it to her with shaky hands.

"No need to be scared. Ms Carter's really nice." She looked down at his schedule and studied it for a moment before handing it back, "Shouldn't be too bad. You have Mr. Quill for PE. He basically blasts 80's music while you play dodge ball. I'm Bobbi by the way. This is Lance. This is Izzy, Idaho and Mack." She gestured to the the other three kids studying him.

"I'm Grant. Grant Ward." Recognition flashed in Bobbi's eyes,

"Ward? Like 'Ward off crisis with Senator Ward' Ward?" Grant flinched at the cliche slogan but nodded. The other kids seemed to recognize the name, the tallest kid, Mack commented on how his mother had voted for him. Grant looked nervously at the wall clock behind Lance. Bobbi seemed to notice and quickly pointed the way to Ms. Carter's room. He nodded his thanks and was about to head down the hall when Lance grabbed his arm,

"Hey, you've got second wave with us. Come find us during lunch!" The older boy released his arm and rushed the other way. Grant stood stunned for a moment, unable to comprehend the invitation. The late bell broke him out of he reverie and he rushed down the hall to class.

When Grant got home that day he was bubbling with excitement. He couldn't wait to tell Skye all about his first day of school. He spread his homework on the desk by the door and kept glancing towards the fence, waiting for Skye to walk through. It felt like an eternity before the gate opened and the small brunette girl popped her head through. Grant waved and opened the door. He went to the cupboard to grab her a snack as she settled in the chair next to his homework. She glanced over his homework and stuck her tongue out.

"So guess what happened at school today!" Skye looked up,

"What?" Grant tossed her a bag of fruit snacks and returned to his seat, ignoring his homework, choosing instead to describe his day,

"I made friends with some 8th graders!" He puffed up his chest and smiled.

"Whoa! Already?" Grant nodded, "How?"

"I got lost in the halls and a nice girl told me where to go. Her friends invited me to lunch. They were all really cool Skye! Bobbi does a lot of martial arts, and Lance is British but he can do a perfect american accent. Bobbi says it makes him sound stupid but I think its really cool! They have a friend named Idaho, but I don't think that's his real name, and then there's Izzy-" Grant continued to ramble on about his new friends. Skye sat and listened until the end, patiently waiting for her turn to speak.

When Grant finally finished his story he gave a huge sigh before focusing his attention back on his friend.

"So how was your first day?" Skye shrugged,

"I didn't go."

"What? Why?"

"There was a family visiting today. The nuns thought I would be perfect."

"And...? What did the family think?" Grant was sometimes perturbed by Skye's cavalier attitude towards getting adopted. It was almost as if she didn't have any hope of actually getting adopted.

"They were considering it. They said they would come back tomorrow, to ask some more questions, spend more time."

"Well that's good! Hey maybe if they like what they see tomorrow, they could be your forever home!" Skye shrugged and looked at the clock on the stove.

"It's getting late, I have to head back! I'm glad you had a great day. I can't wait to hear how tomorrow goes!" The enthusiasm returned to her voice and Grant returned her smile. He walked her back to the gate and wished her luck as she slipped through the gate. He waited for the telltale creak before turning back to the house and returning to his homework.

Hey guys! So I'm on the first leg of a cross country road trip, so I may not be able to update for the next week or so, so I thought I would write something to keep you guys entertained.

I hope the story is living up to your guys expectations.

ps I know Grant heard Skye crying, but never saw her crying, so it is technically the first time he saw her cry.

Please let me know about any inconsistencies or mistakes and I will try to fix them.

Let me know what you think: what you liked, what you didn't like. I'm a big girl, I can take it!

Review REVIEW REVIEW PLEASE

Till next time

-Alex