The House

Chapter Twenty Eight

I stared at the girl, she looked like she was about Maddie's age. She was pulling her knees closer to her trying to curl up as small as possible so she could hide. She looked so vulnerable. "Who doesn't like you, sweetheart?" I asked her softly. She studied my face, trying to figure out if she could trust me or not. I smiled at her, "I won't tell the others you've told me, I promise." She shook her head trying to shake me away. "What's wrong?"

"They all say that, they all pretend to want to help me but they don't really care, do they? It's just their job to be here. They gain your trust then wreck everything, they always have." She told me. I stared at her in shock, was this really how they treated the kids in here? I stood up and kindly offered her my hand to help her up, "Come on then, what do you guys do around here for fun?" She reached up and grabbed my hand , giggling sweetly, allowing herself to be helped up. She kept held of my hand once she was standing and guided me to wherever she wanted to go excitedly. She led me to a small room with just a bed and a box in it. The floor was a horrible grey colour and looked like it was at least 30 years old. The room was a horrible minty green. The box seemed to be all she owned, or all that was left of what she owns. No doubt the others picked on her and stole or wrecked her belongings. I noticed as I came in on the door there was a piece of paper that said "Tee's room" on it. Tee knelt down on the disgusting carpet and pulled the box out from under her bed. Lifting the lid off she revealed two Barbie Dolls and a couple of spare outfits. She handed one to me and kept hold of the other. The hair on the one she kept was neatly plaited and the clothes were nicer. It was clear that it was her favourite one.

We played with these two Barbies for what seemed like hours. Brogan didn't bother finding me but I didn't actually care I was making a young girl happy and that's what mattered. Tee seemed to get a bit bored of making up and acting out different crazy scenarios and went back to just sitting there trying to be as small and hidden as possible. I crawled over to her scratching my hands and knees on the rough, uncomfortable floor. "Hey, what's up?"

She looked at me, this time with more trust. I thought back to how much her eyes lot up when I offered to play with her. Like it was something that rarely happened, if at all. She frowned staring down into her lap and tugging at her cardigan sleeves. "T-the other kids bully me. They l-leave me out and pick on me. I've tried telling the care workers but like I s-said before they don't care about u-us, they don't get about anyone they j-just want to get paid. No one here listens to you or helps, e-everyone makes things w-worse." She stuttered shyly. Tee covered her mouth with her small hand and nibbled on her fingernails. I moved round to sit in front of her and crossed my legs. I pulled her hand away from her mouth"Tee, I know it's hard but you've got to try to ignore it. Say things back, don't be nasty but stand up for yourself. You can't keep hiding from people like this. Chances are you'll be fostered in next to no time. You just need to be more confident." I told her smiling.

"Yeah, you're right. Thanks Cara!" She said more confidently. I noticed she didn't stutter that time as she was not worried or scared anymore. I'm glad I managed to help her. "Tee I'm going to go find Brogan, I promise I'll come back and visit in a few days, okay?" She nodded standing up to hug me.

I made my way back to the room that I'd left Brogan in about an hour ago. The door creaked as I pushed it open, god this place was a mess.

"BROGAN, WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING!?" I yelled as he pulled away from Amelia. A tear dripped down my cheek as what is just seen replayed through my mind again and again.