WINDOWS TO THE SOUL

challenge 2 "the ashen-haired girl."

Her mother's pregnancy was a classic story of an unemployed, unprepared, and unsupported woman doing her best. However, the story changes from mundane and becomes relatively unique. you see her mother had applied for a specific ad for drug testing. Because of the severity of her situation, she lied on the forms which inquired whether or not she was pregnant. I'm not judging her for her choices, I don't believe in resentment toward the desperate.

The young girl's mother was given drugs made to stimulate thinking and the necessary cognitive abilities of the brain: Adital. As one would assume these drugs had their side effects particularly ones that affected the aforementioned young girl. From the moment she was delivered, it was evident that she was a bit different. She was small but perfectly quiet and calm, even beyond newborn standards. Her mother left her at the orphanage because she believed she would receive better care there or perhaps she felt guilty for her actions, the caretaker told me that she never got any more information than that.

Through The years her Frailty ranged from an inability for long outdoor actively to unnaturally brittle bones, and her eyes which though beautiful were uncommon paired with ash blonde hair, and of course, her intellect which was increasingly astonishing made her exceptionally unnatural. leaving her domed to be isolated from the other children.

Her appearance is likely due to her prenatal care. However, all of these qualities made her out to be very intriguing to me.

Many of the people who came to the orphanage did not share the same sentiment as I. Most of these individuals were not idiots, but dealing with someone like Violet is difficult. Having a conversation with her would be a challenge, let alone the idea of adopting her. Somewhere down the line, she gained an affinity for chess; and we met.

"So shale we introduce ourselves," I asked her As we set up the bored

"Ok" she replied with the battlefield was readied.

"William Valcove truly nice to meet you"

"Violet...likewise." she spoke plainly without any inflection.

The game began with a simple question: "what are you here for"? She asked me as the first piece moved.

"To adopt a child" My answer was simple like the second piece's placement.

"Not the obvious" she scoffed quietly, "I mean, why someone who looks like you would adopt a child from a place like this"?

Most children would have simply been satisfied with the basic answer. Apparently, that was too Elementary for her as the fifth piece was placed, I had lost a piece. This rationalization based on our first 5 minutes of the meeting surprised me. She said it as if she was humoring me. The chess game we were playing seemed to mimic our conversation.

I then explained how I want to gain an heir to my estate and adoption seems convenient; In the heat of the moment, I forgot to word it in a less cynical way or to explain it in a childish manner. Even so, she acknowledges what I told her, processed it, and continued with the game. Her calmness and concentration were infallible, her ability to move on was much better than many of the adults I had told this plan to. But what surprised me, even more, was the fact that she put me in check...mate.

I lost. No one other than my father was able to give me a loss since my 12th birthday. The mildly pleasant surprise was spoiled by the caretaker's fiery eyes; Honestly, I had forgotten they were still standing there. But they certainly hadn't forgotten about me, or my money. "well if the game is over how about we continue with the rest of the tour?" They proposed a question though by their soul, the message was they were losing their patients.

"I would like to continue thank you".

My father loathed the outside, and therefore we only went camping once. It came time to make a campfire and he decided it would be much more convenient to put lighter fluid into the basin instead of kindling. The fire I saw from the attendant's eyes far exceeded that campfire.

I couldn't tell what aggravated them more that I wanted to stay, or the fact that they couldn't prevent me from doing so. It was evident that the caretaker's primary method of conversing with the children was to simply demand. However, I was more focused on the young girl's attitude. She seemed perplexed in my willingness or rather my urge to continue our conversation. It was as if no one had opted to talk with her, at least not after actually speaking with her. However, unlike those who may have come before me I was not intimidated by her intellect. Instead, I was intrigued, I was challenged by her.

That is the moment I decided; "I am going to adopt violet". I knew it was the simplest way to continue learning about her, and this abnormality. The added benefit of killing two birds with one stone was an afterthought. I was much more interested in the girl, after all, I had just decided to adopt her. I could not tell what she was thanking but she made a face I am familiar with. It was the face I receive when someone doesn't understand why I am doing something.

"Are you sure?" her voice was meeker than before like she had lost all confidence.

"I am" after my reply, she looked down at the floor. I don't know why.

I wanted to find out why but was rudely interrupted. If I'm honest, it's quite eerie seeing the caretaker's emotions shift so quickly. The conversation with them was concerning greed was there but all of their anger dissipated so quickly. They told me about violet's mother and how she brought her here. It seems too easy to expedite the process of adoption here, but the situation was draining, so there was little point in opposition. In the end, rather quickly I might add, Violet packed her things which seem not to be nearly enough for a girl her age, and she and I left.

As we walked to the car, I noticed she had a particularly unpopular book with her. The book itself was not bad, in fact, it was a fantastic novel. I was a long-time fan of the entire series, but not many people shared that opinion.

"Do you like this book?" She must have seen me staring at it.

"I do, however, it feels a bit lonely because it's not very popular."

She responded in a soft voice: "enjoying different things from everyone around you is, alright." Her response shocked me, so much that I barely noticed when her small brittle hand grabbed mine. Before I could acknowledge it, a beam of sunlight hit my face, as the fog and clouds parted the sky, and a colorful sunset overtook the gray hills. everything seems more vivid...more colorful.