Safe and Sound

Chapter 1

The moon reflected off the lake as Carter reached out for Sadie's hand. Sadie trembled, afraid of the words he'd say next. She couldn't believe that he was going to go through with the engagement.

"Sadie, I love you. It's always going to be you in my heart." Carter looked into her brown eyes, hoping that she'd believe him. 

"Then why are you leaving?" she asked, tears welling up in her eyes. "If you loved me then wouldn't you have chosen to stay with me?" Carter sighed and let go of her, running his hands through his hair. 

"It's not that simple." he replied as the wind picked up, making Sadie's hair sway slightly. He bit his lip. "The thing is-"

"Mia?" Ari's light voice cut in behind the book Mia was reading. Mia lowered her book and glanced up at her sister who gave a timid smile. "Am I interrupting your reading?"

"Duuuh. But no worries." Mia replied with a smile, setting her book down on her lap. "What's up?" Ari sighed a little and sat next to Mia on the drabby sofa. 

"There's a family visiting today." Ari quietly replied, looking up at Mia through her lashes. Mia was silent as she idly thumbed the pages of the book she was holding. She couldn't help but wonder what the point of dressing up nice to try to impress a family was, when you knew the chances of them picking you was slim to none. Mia and Ari, being 16, were now past the age of being the cute new beginning most parents were looking for. Ari watched her sisters expression, trying to read her expression. Finally she spoke up again. "Mia please can we go down? The family is looking for a daughter." Ari begged. Mia glanced at her sister who was, at this point, giving Mia her puppy dog face. With a small chuckle, Mia closed her book and rolled her eyes, muttering, "Fine."

With that, Ari gave a bright smile and excitedly pulled Mia to their room to find their nicest dress and brush out their hair. Mia never understood how Ari would still want to find a family after all the hurt they've been through. They've been through a total of 3 families. Twice the families were found to be abusive and child protective agencies had to step in. The last person who took them in was a kind and gentle grandmother who lived on the edge of town. She was kind to them and it was the first time that Ari and Mia had really felt the happiness and warmth of a home. Sadly, the grandmother died after a short 4 years. What's the point of finding another family? Mia couldn't help but think, frowning at the memories of their past. Still, she just couldn't bear to disappoint Ari. As she brushed and began to braid Ari's dark brown hair, Mia felt her thoughts gravitate back to the book she was reading. It was a small book that she had gotten from a kind librarian from the high school she attended last. When she asked why the librarian was giving her that particular book, the woman simply smiled and said, 'I think there are some things you'll learn from the story.' Being only a couple chapters through the book, Mia couldn't be sure exactly what the librarian wanted her to take away from the story yet. The only thing she could think was that Sadie was stupid for thinking Carter would actually stay. Once a person sees a better opportunity, they'll take it without a second thought. What a crummy lesson. Mia thought bitterly. With a heavy heart, Mia followed her sister down the stairs of the orphanage and waited with the other children for the family to arrive. Ari nervously looked around the room filled with over 20 other girls, straightening out her dress. Mia gave Ari a reassuring smile and just before she could give her encouraging words, the door opened. All the chatter dissipated and all eyes turned towards the three people standing inside the doorframe. The headmaster of the orphanage cleared her throat and took a step forward.

"Children, this is Mr. and Mrs. Heart along with their son, Max." Everyone in the room murmured their hello's as the family waved and smiled kindly. "We'll call you out one by one." With that, she led the family inside the room to her office. When the door closed, everyone started to talk at once in hushed whispers.