Shaken (An Adopted By Lin-Manuel Miranda Story)

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Ariana's Point of View

After I left for the orphanage, I had a feeling.

Not a feeling of sickness, a feeling of excitement, or a feeling of achievement.

That time of day, I felt like something was going to happen.

But not something bad, no. Something way different. Positive vibes kept coming, and I was confused. This kind of thing never happened to me. Ariana the pitied, small, worthless orphan never had things done in her favour. But then again, things didn't always go downhill. Sometimes, things went fine. But that was it. No 'things are going extra fantabulous!' Things just... existed.

And I was sort of ok with that. Because once something goes perfect for you, everything else is a let-down. Alas, I could only wait and see what would happen.

This time when I walked home from church, I felt so different. So much more confident. I was wearing Lin-Manuel Miranda's personal hoodie that said 'King's College.' It was a huge for me... including the part where I got to wear something I always wanted to, jewelled jeans.

I guess I knew what I was wearing to school on Monday.

I walked up the stairs of the old orphanage, itching to jump on my bed and just lay there. I wasn't going to scream like a fangirl, I wasn't going to do nothing about it. I was going to contemplate it. Think about it. Drill it in my brain and write about it so it would be a day I would never forget.

I quickly took my shoes off and set them in my cubby, taking off through the burgundy halls before being stopped by none other than Adam and Daisy, blocking the stairway. I nervously smiled, looking them both in the eyes before sighing. "I'm sorry, guys. You both know that I know that I shouldn't have done that, that he could've been a poser or a person looking for fresh blood, but I was caught up. You guys know that writing is my life, and he's one of the only people that inspire me now. It won't ever happen again, I promise," I admitted in a fast manner, a slight frown on my face as I looked to my feet. Adam and Daisy merely looked each other in the eyes and burst out laughing. Daisy stepped down a few stairs, grabbing my hands, a few inches parting our faces. "Ari, I know that you know your street smarts, just like you said. If I were in your situation, I probably would have done the same thing. I know that it's hard, but just remember that you didn't give him your address, and he doesn't have the orphanage's phone number. He has no contact with you anymore, and that's all that matters, right?" She asked and I could feel my heart ripping to shreds as I nodded. Sure, in the bottom of my heart I knew that I would never associate with him again, but I really didn't like to hear it out loud. He was the only one to make me smile truly in a long while, the only one I could look back on and think 'wow, I had a great experience with him.'

Adam could tell that I was clearly getting upset, and so he took his hand in mine gently. "Here, Ari. Let me show you something," he said, gazing to Daisy as they nodded to each other.

I was confused, yet I followed him up the creaky old stairs to the younger kids' and I's room. I'd had the same room since I came, and they decided not to move me so I wouldn't have to readjust. I hated change. But instead of turning right to go to my room, located at the very end, we turned to the master bedroom. This room had four beds placed near each other, with two sleeping bags laid out on the floor in front. The walls were filled with different quotes and pictures of them with their friends, having fun, making memories. I gazed around the room as he motioned for me to sit on one of the beds. "Alright. So, I've been waiting for this for a long time," he said, and I looked at him, confused. "When we first found you, out of all the kids, you were my favourite. The other kids were special, but I didn't see as much potential in them as I did in you. And that's why I was, and still am confused. How haven't you found a family yet? I figured that six years ago you would have been adopted any day, and so did Daisy, but she has her own story to tell you later on," he explained, getting up and grabbing something from a drawer. "Anyway. We both though that we would give you a gift so you'd remember us in a way." He handed me a small box, worn out, a faded colour of red velvet. "Open it whenever you're ready, there's no rush," he told me, looking at my face. I admired the box for a few seconds, the beauty of it clouding my eyes. I fiddled with the front of it, close to opening it as I stopped. "Adam, is it okay if I..." I started, looking him in the face as he nodded, knowing exactly what I was going to say. I grinned and popped open the box, a small bracelet wrapped around a piece of cardboard. It was golden with five charms... one with a 'd,' one with an 'a,' and another one with an 'a,' a heart between each. I looked back up to him as tears formed in my eyes. No one had ever done anything like that for me before. "Adam," my voice cracked, tears visibly streaming down my face, now.

"I love it so much... but why now?"

Lin's Point of View

I spent around an hour trying to remember the name of the people that looked after Ari, then it finally clicked in my head. I looked up 'Adam Driver, Daisy Ridley, orphanage', and up came the results of none other than the one. The one that quite possibly held the fate of the rest of my life. I mean, I was planning on having a kid, anyway. I didn't really care if they were my own, all I cared of is that we shared the same bond. Personally, I preferred being single. I had a crush sometimes, yes, but I knew in the long run that I would be better off alone. I wanted a kid really badly, though. I knew that she was a fan... but she was just so nice. She held all the qualities that I was looking for in a child. Besides, the orphanage was little known. I wasn't doing this for attention or charity work, I was doing it out of pure adoration for the child. She seemed like the perfect kid to teach, and I wanted to help her all I could.

So after lots of thought, I picked up the phone, and slowly called the number on the screen.