The Little Matchmaker | Jody and Tyler | Book 1

Chapter Two: Welcome To The Dumping Ground

One bag. One bag was all Isla had in the whole world. There wasn't much time, not enough time to pack up all of her things. So, she had to make do with what she had. Just one bag. One bag that was conveniently held in her hand. She was certain that her Mum would know she was gone by now. They had to be home by now. They would be sorry she thought. Sorry they were so mean to her, because now she was gone.

Although, Isla was happy to have left home she did have more important things on her mind. She stared at the large brick house in front of her. It looked nice. But looks can be deceiving. 'Ashdene Ridge' the sign read. She wondered what it would be like, would she like it there? Would she make friends? Or would she regret leaving home? No! She would never regret that! She hated it at home, and she was happy to be free.

Nicole, her new social worker, walked up behind her. She placed her hand on Isla's shoulder and squeezed it. "It looks big and scary, but it's not really, you'll see."

Nicole began to walk towards the door and Isla followed behind her. Once inside, they were met by a rather friendly looking man.

"Hello, I'm Mike," he said. "You must be Isla."

Isla shook his hand. He seemed a nice man. He had a huge smile on his face and was shaking her hand rather vigorously. Apart from Mike, Isla could see no one else. She looked around the house. She couldn't see much from the doorway, but she saw the stairs and the lounge to the left and straight in front of her she saw what she thought must be the kitchen. She kept looking everywhere she could, desperate to spot one of the children she would be living with, but she still hadn't seen anyone else.

Suddenly, a loud crowd of voices rose up from the silence, supposedly coming through the back door. Isla couldn't work out what they were saying, only that someone called Floss had cheated at some sort of game.

"Shall we talk in the office?" Mike said, letting go of Isla's hand and opening the office door. Isla wanted to say no. She wanted to stay and meet everyone. Get it over and done with. But Mike and Nicole had already entered the office and so Isla followed. 

While Isla sat in the quiet office, the young people in the kitchen could not have been any louder.

"You cheated Floss!" Alex shouted.

"How did I cheat?" Floss asked in defence, jumping up and sitting on the kitchen counter.

"You picked the ball up with your hands!" Jody snapped.

"Alright! Alright! Guys quiet down. Don't you remember that we have a new girl coming today? You don't want to make a bad impression," May-Li said, calming the young people down.

Jody tutted. "She'll find out how crazy it is here no matter how hard we try. So why bother trying to be all nice and proper, to begin with?"

May-Li sighed. Jody did have a point.

"Maybe, but is that a nice thing to say about your new roommate?" May-Li asked.

Jody groaned. She had been trying to forget about the whole 'roommate' thing. She couldn't stand having to share her room.

"Do I really have to share?" Jody pleaded.

May-Li didn't say anything. She didn't have to; Jody knew perfectly well what the answer was going to be.

May-Li left the kitchen and walked into the office. She didn't know Nicole or Isla were inside, so frankly she had a bit of a shock when she entered the room. Nicole, Mike, and Isla stared at May-Li for a moment.

"Em, this is May-Li," Mike said. "May-Li, this is Isla."

"You're here!" May-Li exclaimed, a bit awkwardly.

Isla nodded.

"Well, nice to meet you," she said.

There was a moment of silence. No one knew what to say.

"I'll leave you to it then," May-Li finally said, leaving and shutting the office door behind her.

Isla peeked through an opening in the blinds. The house seemed full of kids now. All running about, up and down the stairs, in the lounge and in the kitchen. Young kids, older kids; all governed by these two adults. The more she looked out the window the more she worried. How would she remember all their names? What if she didn't get along with some of them? What if they hated her?

"Isla?" Mike said, breaking her train of thought. "What do you say?"

"Say to what?" Isla asked, worried that she hadn't been listening to what Mike was saying.

"Do you want to meet the kids now?"

Isla nodded and Mike led her and Nicole out into the hallway.

Nicole turned to Isla. "I'll leave you now, see you at your next meeting."

And with that, she was gone, and Isla was left in a house full of strangers.

"KIDS!!" Mike shouted. "COME HERE PLEASE!!"

After a minute, Isla saw children appearing from all directions. There was one girl who looked at Isla like no one else in the room did. She stood leaning on the door frame of the lounge; her arms crossed giving Isla a glare like she despised her already.

"Right everyone!" Mike announced. "This is Isla Brown, and she will be staying with us from now on."

The kids moaned.

"So, Isla, I think Jody will show you to your room."

Isla looked around the room full of kids wondering which one was Jody. For a while, no one came forward. Until the girl leaning on the door frame did. The one that Isla thought hated her already. This was Jody.

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Thanks for reading the second chapter! If you don't already know, Isla is a character that I have made up. Does Jody really hate Isla? Come back tomorrow to find out!

From writingrabbit6 xxx

963 Words