The Black Swan

Adopted

Chapter One: Adopted

I remember that day.

My dad's eyes were red as he handed me over to the social worker constantly turning back to give me an extra hug or an extra kiss but he let me go.

Let me go to those people....

The sky turned a dark shade of blue and rain began to drip on my face as I played in the front yard in my impromptu sandbox. My mom's deserted garden. She left it when she left me and my dad on that cold December day a few days before Christmas. Her last words were 'I'm sorry' as if 'I love you' wasn't the first thought.

I would never leave my child even if someone threatened to hurt me.

Because I would fight for them, for me, for us.

*

"Hey pretty girl," the social worker, Atta Leon, spoke to me as she watched me color in a smiling bear. I smiled up at her but continued to color in the dark brown animal dressed in a clown suit. "I have some good news for you. There's a family that wants to adopt you," she exclaimed excitedly to me when I placed my crayon down.

The smile on her face was truly genuine but I had to search her eyes. They told me everything. Things I wouldn't know if I just focused on a smile or a frown.

Eyes never lie.

"What's their name?"

"Charlie and Reneé. They have a 11 month old daughter already but they wanted another. I told them your name."

"Did you show them the picture of me with my hair in a bun or in pigtails?", I picked my crayon back up to place my name on the edge of the paper.

"I showed them the whole album. You always look beautiful."

"Thank you, so do you. Can I meet them?"

Her eyes were curious and she reached up to fix a curl that had fallen into my face. I waited for her answer with a tilted head and a patient smile.

"You may meet them," she took out her phone and showed me the picture of this perfect little family. A handsome man cradling his brown haired wife who in turn was holding their baby girl. "I will take you to them in a week. Will you like that?"

My single nod was her answer and she pressed a kiss on my forehead. I could see the tears well up as she nodded like that one nod put her at peace. And somewhere in my mind, I knew she was.

I was three and I understood more about the world than most kids my age.