Never Ever Gonna Happen (Complete)

Chapter Twenty Three

Amanda pulled the car to a halt before an unfamiliar two storey building.

“Where are we?” Jeanie's eyes scanned the building.

“It's an orphanage.” Amanda said, pushing the car's door open and climbing out.

“I know it's an orphanage, I can read!” Jeanie groaned, her gaze following Amanda as she walked over to Jeanie's side of the car and pulled her door wide open. “We have to go in?” Her mouth fell open.

Amanda nodded.

Jeanie shook her head. “No way! I might have failed to mention it in the past but kids, they scare me.” A shiver ran down her spine. “Especially when they're congregated in a building. One kid, I probably can handle but when they're in number, they're capable of more damage than we give them credit for. Can you imagine ten, twenty kids, living, sleeping, eating together with nothing else to do but sit and plan some kind of weird coup against the adult world?”

Amanda just stared at her like she had gone crazy.

Folding her arms across her chest, Jeanie leaned back and shook her head. “The last time I was around that many kids, they tied my shoe laces together and when I tripped, I had to have my jaw wired.”

“That is not true!”

“Believe it or not, Amanda, I'm not going in!” Jeanie said, pulling her eyelids shut.

“Just trust me for a few minutes, Jeanie and I promise we'll be out of there really fast.” Amanda insisted. “Besides, these are well behaved kids. You're not going to turn your back on a helpless orphan, are you?”

Jeanie opened her mouth to speak but decided against it. Perhaps Amanda was right. Besides, the incident with the tied shoe laces happened when she was eight. Obviously, it was time to move past it, right? She shook her head. She couldn't move past it but she could give the orphans a chance, right? She'd just have to keep her eyes on her shoes.

Her gaze moved to her feet. Great, she didn't have tennis shoes on, there were no shoe laces at stake.

“Fine!” She said, feeling a little safe at the fact that she wouldn't have to worry about tripping.

She climbed out of the car and allowed Amanda lead her up the stairs of the orphanage. 

“Is there anything else you're afraid of that I need to know about?” Amanda teased.

“Kids, teenagers, adults...” She counted on her fingers. “Roaches, spiders, grouchy old men...”

“Basically the world at large.” Amanda laughed, pushing the door open.

“Basically.” Jeanie shrugged and stepped into the rather rowdy building.

For a brief second, she stood frozen as her gaze traveled the room full of children. She didn't exactly know their ages, but she guessed ages four to fifteen.

“Remind me again why we're standing in an orphanage.” She muttered to Amanda who stood beside her.

“Because, Jeanie, Bernard owns this place.”

“What?!”

“Amanda!”

Jeanie turned her surprised gaze from Amanda to the unfamiliar voice.

“It's so good to see you again.” The strange woman with white hair called as she covered the distance that stood between them and wrapped Amanda in an embrace.

“Likewise, June.” Amanda smiled, releasing her hold on the woman. “This is Jeanie, and we're just looking around. Jeanie, this is June Knight.”