Adopted by Scarlett Johansson

chapter thirty three - numb

Maddie lay in bed for hours. Too numb to cry or get angry. Too numb to move or check her phone. A few times Loki would come in and check on her and every now and then Lizzie would come in. Lizzie kindly packed a rucksack for Maddie as well - just incase she really was leaving. As much as she wanted to deny Maddie leaving, Lizzie had a pit of dread in her stomach.

As the hours ticked by and the pick up time was getting closer, Scarlett was starting to panick. Robert had called nearly all the lawyers that were available and Chris had contacted the adoption agency trying to find out more details and who the people where. For the most of it Scarlett sat quielty in the corner looking over memories and photos they had made over the last few months. She kept checking the clock. 12:00. 13:00. 14:00. Maddie was getting picked up at three and still neither Robert or Chris had managed to cancel this adoption or try to delay it.

"Scar. Its two-thirty and nothings happening. Do you wanna go spend some time with her?" Lizzie said gently whilst kneeling down next to her.
"I can't otherwise it will make it more real, like its acutally going to happen"
"Scar..."
"No...no"
Lizzie signed and turned to Chris. Beckoning him over.
"You need to get her to see Mads for the last time but she's in too much denial." She whispered.
"Hey scar....cmon. Let's go for a walk"
Chris helped Scarlett up and walked her out the kitchen down the hall towards Maddie's room.
"No no no no" Scarlett whispered whilst trying to resist walking, but Chris kept a firm grip on her as she guided her towards the bedroom.
Chris stoped just before the door and took hold of Scarletts shoulders.
"Spend the last half an hour with her okay?"
"Chris. No please....because if I do...if I go in there....I've officially let her down. She's actually leaving and we can't do anything"
"Yes we can. We will try to anything and everything in the next half an hour but this is just incase we can't do enough"
"No...no...please please" Scarlett started sobbing. "Please" she whispered.
Chris hugged her tightly. He hated seeing his best friend go through so much pain. No one should deserve this. He could feel Scarletts chest heaving in between the sobs so he just held her tighter, wishing all her pain would disappear.
After a few minutes Chris decided that this was it.
"Cmon"
He detached Scarlett from around his waist and gently pushed her towards the door, nudging it open with his foot.

Scarlett stood in the entrance to the room. She couldn't face Maddie. She had promised nothing would happen and Scarlett would never forgive herself after this. Peeking her head around the wall, Scarlett felt a person hurdle into her and start crying.
Woah. She hadn't even seen Maddie move and now all of a sudden she was hugging her tightly sobbing into her shoulder. Together they stumbled over to the bed and hugged each other, both with tears streaming down their faces. Neither one had the strength to comfort the other and they both understood that. They just sat, making the most of the last few minutes together.
"I've loved the last few months together. Thank you" Maddie croaked out.
"So have i mads. So have I. And I promise, I'll get you back. You're not leaving for long."
"haha, thanks" Maddie said softly. She knew she shouldn't get her hopes up no matter what Scarlett said.
These last few months had been a one in a life time opportunity and Maddie had loved every single day. Even school was better. She always knew at the end of the day she'd get to come home to Rose and Scarlett. Thinking about it, Maddie wouldn't even get to say goodbye to Rose. And how would she explain to Lynn, James and Olive that she just wasn't coming to school anymore? That she was leaving? Again she shouldn't even be able to say goodbye to them. Just as Maddie felt her eyes well up once again, Robert knocked on the door. It was time to go.

Robert came in and gently took Scarlett and Maddie's hands leading them out the bedroom and towards the front door. Maddie was trying so hard to keep it together but she let a few more tears slip down her cheek. She turned towards Lizzie to say goodbye.
"Bye....I'm gonna miss you so much...please still text me"
"Mads" Lizzie whispered whilst pulling her into a hug "of course I'll still text you. You're my little gossip girl" she said pulling back and trying to smile through the tears.
Next was Chris and Robert. "Thank you" At this point Maddie was finding it hard to form actual sentences, as she was crying so much, so instead she just hugged them both tightly and said to Chris. "Say bye to dodger for me"
"Wait. Oh my god" Maddie spun around and squinted through her tears looking for Loki whilst sprinted to get her cat carrier. How had she forgotten him?!

Now it really was time to go. She hugged everyone for the last time and was led outside by a woman in a suit.
"You're gonna love your new family honey! They're waiting at the new house!" She said cheerily as if she hadn't just ripped Maddie away from her own family.
Maddie kept glancing up the path, trying so hard so resist walking, but the woman had a firm grip on her shoulder.
"Cmon honey! We don't have all day!" She said with a plastered fake smile.

Eventually reaching the car, Maddie turned back and saw Scarlett being held back by Chris and Robert shaking as sobs racked her body. After placing Loki in the car she climbed in and for the final time, she turned to look back her family. She saw that Scarlett had collapsed to the floor crying. Lizzie was standing next to her being comforted by Chris. Seeing the few people that really loved her broken, broke her to a whole new extent. She cried the hardest she ever had as memories of the past few months came flooding in. Her first time at the beach. Her first thanksgiving. Her first day of school. The first time meeting Rose. Even the first night they had met. That awful night had actually turned out to be one of the luckiest nights of Maddie's life.

Once the woman had climbed into the back seat the car spread off, heading to a completely new family and a whole new state. Maddie felt alone and numb. It was over. Her few months of dream land were over.