Chapter 4

Dogwood children's orphanage

The sun was shining brightly, as it did every summer in SimsBury Connecticut. Illuminating the laughing children on the orphanage playground. The grass was green and the sky was blue. It was almost perfect. Perfect for everyone except a certain young boy. From his window Andy Barclay stared out at the other children playing basketball, or hopscotch, heck even some games they'd just make up. This place was definitely better than the orphanage Mrs. Poole owned back in Chicago. It was bigger, cleaner and had a playground in the back. Even with all of this Andy wasn't happy. He had been at this orphanage for five years and knew the staff very well. They treated Andy well but this place still didn't feel like home.

Andy had little reason to be happy. Ever since he had been separated from his mom eight years ago he had been going to a couple foster homes, which he could recall every detail. How much time do you have? Thought Andy as if speaking to an imaginary audience. Do you want to hear about the crazy parents who use the money for the foster kids to stretch their own budget? The endless nights of Hamburger Helper? Or how about the dad who believed in equal doses of the Bible and the belt.

But nothing was worse than the Simpsons' house. When Chucky came back and killed his foster parents, then tried to kill him and Kyle in the factory. He missed Kyle…She probably stayed in the area he had left because she felt comfortable there. She promised she would write to him, but the last time he had heard from her was last year. Andy understood that she was busy now. She was about ten years older than he was so she had a couple jobs, an apartment now and was finishing up college. It took her longer because she hadn't had much money and still didn't have much. Still, he wished so badly he could see her. She was like an older sister, the one true friend he had.

He had met other boys and girls in the orphanage, but even those very few that he had befriended had eventually left once they were adopted by a foster family. Of course Andy wouldn't be adopted. So many people knew about his history with Charles Lee Ray and many of them didn't want him in their house. Even though Chucky died six years ago, and nothing bad had happened that he was involved in, he still hadn't been able to visit his mother. Not only would it cost the orphanage to send him there, but the nurses at the institution didn't feel it was a good idea for him to visit her just yet.

Just yet…? It's been almost eight years since I've seen my mother. How can they think that waiting longer is going to make any difference?

It had been so long since Andy had cried so why start now? He had stopped feeling sorry for himself and just kept living day to day as if it were all the same. Time wasn't important anymore, it just seemed to pass. Even for his thirteenth birthday when the orphanage had given him a special 'young teen party' as they called it, which they did for all those turning thirteen, he still hadn't enjoyed himself. He had forced himself to eat cake and play some games, but didn't smile and didn't laugh. He did talk but only if someone else spoke to him.

The doctor came around quite frequently to make sure all the kids were healthy. He had diagnosed Andy with a case of mild depression. He had been eight when he was diagnosed. It was unheard of for an eight-year-old to have depression, but he did. He was given some medication, but it hardly helped. The staff at the orphanage was just mostly afraid he'd kill himself or something. No matter how sad or upset or numb he had felt over the years he had never attempted nor wanted to kill himself.

A knock at his door made him glance up and one of the staff members entered his room. Charlotte, a brown headed girl at the age of 23 with gentle blue eyes. She was the only person Andy really talked to in the orphanage. He had met her three years ago when he first arrived. Her family was wealthy, but she liked the feeling of earning her own money. Sometimes, she reminded him a little bit of Kyle, just not as tom-boyish. She was very sweet, pretty and someone whom Andy could trust. Soon after he had met her, he had told her the story of why he was there. He had asked her if she thought he was insane for believing his Good Guy doll was possessed and killed people but she had just smiled and shook her head. He remembered what she said: "There is always truth in what people say, even the ones people call crazy."

"Good morning Andy," she greeted, smiling brightly. "Why aren't you outside playing with the other kids?"

Andy shrugged. "I just don't feel much like playing four square."

Charlotte approached him and pulled up a chair to sit down.

"Are you feeling sad again?" she asked, referring to his depression.

Andy shook his head. "No, I'm fine. I just…," he trailed off for a minute, but Charlotte sat patiently and waited for him to continue. "I just really miss my mom. I mean, I like it here, but every day feels the same."

Charlotte nodded in understanding, raising her hand to brush some of his bangs away. Andy's hair was shorter and different than what he used to wear around six and eight. He still had bangs and dark blonde hair with big brown eyes, but he looked older. In fact, he did look a bit young to be thirteen. He still had that cute face and smile. He was a handsome boy, you wouldn't guess he had depression by looking at him.

"I know that it can sometimes feel like a prison in this place, no matter how pretty it is. You just have to understand that it's not easy for orphanages to care for children these days. You were lucky this place had an opening for you, being one of the top orphanages around."

"It was because of my history. If I hadn't been suspected for murder they wouldn't have taken me in. They thought that because they're one of the richest orphanages in the U.S. that they would have enough help for me," Andy replied. "They haven't found anything wrong with me except for depression and it's not even severe depression."

"You're right," Charlotte said softly. "So if there's nothing wrong with you, why do you keep yourself locked away here? Why not try and enjoy yourself, start over?"

Andy shook his head gently. "I can't…I can't because I feel all alone. I know I have you to talk to, but you're really busy some days working around here or on vacation with your family. I have no friends here and those that I did make friends with are gone. I can't visit my mom and I can't even get a temporary foster family, not that I really want one. If I were to start over, I'd want it to be with my mom, in a new house where I can go to a new school where no one knows about the rumors about me and where my mom can get a better job. That's what I want."

Charlotte sighed and pulled him into a hug. "I know, sweetie. You just hang in there, alright?"

She released him, gave him a quick kiss on the forehead and headed toward the door. Before leaving she turned around once more.

"I'll bring you something to eat a little later since you missed breakfast, okay?"

Andy nodded with a hardly noticeable smile and watched as she closed the door. He leaned against the wall and went back to staring out the window. He had tried almost everything the doctor had suggested: writing, forcing himself to join in, nothing worked. The writing had helped in the beginning, but the owner of the orphanage, Mrs. Malkum, had been so appalled by what he wrote (mostly the details about the murders) that she had told the doctor it wasn't a good idea. She was frightened it would cause him to have a mental breakdown if he remembered such things. Andy wrote off and on since then, but hid the journal under his bed. Sighing, Andy walked back toward his bed and lay down upon it. He let his eyes flutter closed and before long he was fast asleep.

The knock at his door woke him several hours later and he rubbed his eyes tiredly. Thinking that it was Charlotte he went and opened the door. There, before him, stood Mrs. Carter. Although she was a hard working older woman, she was fairly strict and when she was mad got this stern look upon her face. She smiled down at him as Andy opened the door all the way.

"I see you've missed breakfast again," she said, staring at him. "Do you need to see the doctor again?"

"No, ma'am, I'm fine. I just wasn't feeling hungry this morning," Andy said.

Mrs. Carter just nodded. "Very well. I have some good news for you. Please, sit."

Andy sat down on his bed and Mrs. Malkum pulled up a chair to sit in front of him.

"Now Andy, you arrived here on August 30th 1991 and have been living with us since, correct?" She took the third paper from the top and read off some more information, flipping through the papers in her hands.

Andy nodded. Mrs. Carter then flipped some more asking him questions about his age, date of birth, place of birth, medical history, things like that just to double-check to see if anything changed.

"Well, that's good to see things haven't changed and we're up to date," she smiled. "You'll be glad to know that there's a family interested in adopting you."

Andy blinked with wide eyes, looking fairly surprised. "R-really!?" He brought his voice down following. "A family wants to adopt me?"

"Yes. Mr. and Mrs. Hadison. See, being patient has its rewards," she smiled. "Now, because of your age you are welcome to choose not to allow the family to adopt you, if you feel you don't like them. You will get a chance to meet them very shortly. They'll be visiting tomorrow afternoon so I've asked Charlotte to go out and retrieve a new outfit for you. You haven't got many clothes in the first place, so it'll be nice for you to have something new to wear."

Andy nodded, feeling a bit speechless. Mrs. Carter stood up and tucked the papers under her arm.

"That's all I had to tell you today, Andy. I'm normally not supposed to say these things, but this family is fairly wealthy. I hear they've got a pool and everything," she smiled. "And you won't be alone. They adopted a boy years back from a different orphanage. He's a bit older than you are, but it'd be nice to have a sibling, right?"

"Yes," Andy responded, still not believing that he was going to be adopted.

"Well, you best come downstairs for lunch now. You're probably starving."

Andy nodded and quickly stood up, following her out. It seemed that things just might be finally starting to look up.