Last Chance || A SBI Adoption AU

A Game of Odds

"This could be that one in a million chance you always talked about."

We took the remainder of our hour to chat and get to know each other, and the barest hints of progress could be seen as Techno and I started to open up to them.

Until I noticed that one of the kids, Tommy, had some sort of hostility towards us. His constant glares, unwillingness to talk to us and the constant pushing and confusion from his family spoke volumes, making my anxious thoughts spike. Techno's thumb continued to rotate my ring, and honestly I think it was grounding us both in this moment. Despite the many quiet protests that we were unable to hear from Tommy, we ended up inside Phil's minivan, which bumbled along the road steadily. Wilbur and Phil kept us fairly occupied with conversation and little hand games, but I still noted that Tubbo and Tommy were having a quiet argument behind us. I let out a near silent sigh, drawing my knees to my chest and leaning against Techno.

He glanced down at me, and I immediately knew he understood and shared my anxieties. I offered a small smile up to him, sharing a silent conversation through glances and gentle taps or squeezes. With a huff, he set his chin on top of my head, holding me close. I tucked myself under his chin, burying my face into his shirt with a quiet yawn.

The smooth road soon turned bumpy, and the angle of the car shifted as we pulled into a driveway. Techno didn't get up, but I could feel him shift slightly so he could see where we were.

"Alright kids, we're home!" Phil said cheerfully, and I heard his door open and slam shut. 

I sat up, glancing out the tinted window with a small sigh. The house was very nice, at least from what I could see in my awkwardly cramped position. Techno unbuckled himself and shoved the car door open, silently waiting for me to step out onto the driveway with him.

"Alright, We'll get you two settled in, and then we can get the logistics out of the way. How does that sound?" Phil asked, unlocking the front door of the massive house. I vaguely heard Techno respond, but I was quickly distracted by the house in front of us. 

It was easily the biggest house I had ever been faced with, having two levels and many visible windows. I had to roughly estimate it had at least three or four bedrooms, and I shuddered slightly. It seemed so big, almost too big. 

Techno tugged my hand, drawing my gaze away from the grey-with-white-trim house, and I met his questioning look. I gave a slight shrug, shifting my gaze to the ground and tightening my grip on his hand slightly. He gently tugged me along, leading me inside. We stopped just inside the hallway, the other kids having already dispersed upstairs, and Phil was waiting for us patiently inside a nice sitting room. Automatically I reached down, unlacing my boots and slipping them off, tucking them to the side, dully noting when Techno's shoes appeared next to mine.

"Alright, we just need to cover a few quick things, then I can let you settle into your room, okay?" Phil said, leading us into the kitchen.

He sat at the head of the table, giving us a gentle smile as he gestured for us to sit down in front of him.

"I just wanted to discuss some house rules, is all. Everything here is pretty simple." I must've visibly tensed up, running through all of the bullshit rules the last houses had. "Ah, don't worry, its really nothing much," He tried to reassure us, but it was clear we were on high alert now. He let out a small sigh. "Sorry, I should've worded that better-

Its really simple, just knocking if a door is closed before you walk in, letting me know before you leave the house, cleaning up any mess you make. You are free to have anything in the kitchen, make anything you want. 

Chores get done every weekend, we split them evenly among everyone. You don't have to participate in any of the group activities we do if you don't want to. I make dinner every night around 5, you don't have to eat with us, but we usually eat together down here.

Everyone gets a weekly allowance of twenty dollars, and I can take you guys shopping tomorrow for clothes and stuff to decorate your rooms with."

I relaxed, blinking in surprise. 

"That's... it?" I asked, my voice near a whisper. "I mean... that's so much freedom for a bunch of troubled teens that you don't even know." He gave a soft smile.

"The foster system is shit. I don't think you are troubled kids, I think you are misunderstood, so unless you give me a reason not to trust you, I trust you." He said with a smile. Techno leaned forwards with a slight sneer.

"Oh, so that's it. We're charity case to you?!" He demanded. "Took one look at our files and said to yourself and said 'oh, I can fix these kids right up!'" I squeezed Techno's hand, giving him a sharp look. He rolled his eyes, slumping back in his chair. And Phil...

laughed. 

"Yeah, I can see how you see that. Tommy said the exact same thing when I fostered him and Tubbo." He smiled fondly at the memory, before sliding out of his chair. "Do you two prefer to share a room, or have separate rooms?"

(Word Count: 932)

(Art Credit: inkedunder on Twitter)