Another You - Austin Carlile, Tony Perry, Chris Motionless

Ghost In The Mirror

"So if you wish, you may adopt Katelyn," Austin's lawyer told us. "Their wishes for her were unclear but I think you both are the best fit. She knows both of you quite well, she enjoys spending time with the both of you. All you would need to do is find her a school and sign some papers." 

Austin squeezed my hand and looked out at the little girl with tear stained cheeks. We told her last night and at first she didn't quite understand but over the course of 10 minutes she got it and has been a mess ever since. He looked back at me and sighed deeply. 

"What are you comfortable with, Rory?" 

I looked at him in shock and placed my other hand on top of his. "Baby, I love you so much and that little girl out there is our world, and she isn't even ours. I would be honored to adopt her and take care of her under these circumstances."

"Okay," he whispered. "We'll do it, we'll sign the papers." 

His lawyer smiled and opened a filing cabinet, pulling out a stack of papers from a folder. He flicked through a few of them before pulling out a stack that were paper clipped together. "Read over these and then sign where ever you see a yellow tab." 

Austin and I nodded and started flicking through the sheets one by one, reading everything carefully to understand what everything meant. We started signing tab after tab until we came to the final page with the final yellow tab. We both exhaled a sigh of relief and put our signatures down once more. 

"Very nice, thank you very much," the lawyer hummed. "Now, a child services worker will be stopping by a few times unannounced just to make sure you're adjusting and Katelyn is adjusting. If you have in questions, comments or concerns do not hesitate to contact me." 

We both nodded and thanked him for his time, shaking his hand in the process. I grabbed my purse and walked out the door that Austin was holding for me. Katie leaped up at the sight of both of us and rushed into our arms. 

"Pl-please tell me that you're n-not sending me o-off," she sobbed hysterically. "I do-don't want to g-go anywhere el-else!" 

Austin scoped her into his arms, lifting her up in the process. "Sweetie, I would never let that happen to you, never." 

"Never, ever," she asked, wiping the tears away.

Austin chuckled and helped brush a few stray ones away. "Never, ever, never. Aunt Rory and I are going to take care of you from now on and you'll get to live with us. Does that sound good?" 

She nodded and clutched his neck, trying not to cry anymore. She looked up at me and suddenly held her arms out. I cracked a sad smile and embraced her while she was still with Austin. He wrapped his free arm around me and we stood there in silence for a minute before exiting the building.

"Can I go to work with Aunt Rory," Katie asked quietly. 

Austin looked at me and I nodded. "Of course you can, Sweetie. I love having my little helper with me." 

She smiled and asked to be set down. Austin obliged and grabbed my hand, intertwining our fingers and walking to our cars. Katie climbed into mine and Austin kissed me goodbye. 

"I'll see you tonight," he whispered. "We need to talk about what's going to happen with schools and this tour coming up." 

I nodded, "I'll be home extra early tonight." I pecked his lips again and climbed into my car, waving at him as I drove off. "What do you want for lunch today, Kiddo?" I peeked in the rear view mirror and saw a look of pure concentration on her face, it was priceless. I chuckled softly and continued the drive to the office while she pondered such a big decision in her life.