My Everything-Adopted by Ariana

Table For Two

Ariana's P.O.V

Piper's reaction to her new room filled my heart with a gallon of joy. Not only did I feel proud of myself for giving Piper the perfect room but, I was so proud she was able to adjust so quickly. I mean, she was so good with Ophelia's presence! I can't wait for Frankie, Mom and Jai meet her ! My heart almost burst at the thought of Grandpa Frank not being able to see my little angel. His death has taken a toll on the whole family and I guess he was part of the reason why my life has been feeling empty. I felt my eyes water as I remember his kind presence and soothing tone of voice.

I can't cry now. I have to stay strong for Piper now.

To distract my mind, I pulled Piper's small bag on to her large bed and zipped it open. To no surprise, the amount of clothes she had was small,like her bag. That means our first shopping trip is going to be soon! I mentally screamed as I started to take out the four shirts she had in her bag. I carefully took each shirt,one by one, and hung them up on the colorful hangers I purchased. After five minutes, I finished hanging up all of her tops and shirts and her closet wasn't even half full as yet. Let's make that shopping trip tomorrow. I made my way to the dirty clothes I instructed Piper to leave out for me. Her shirt and sweater were covered in grass, grass stains and dirt. I slapped one hand over my nose to protect myself from the smell before reluctantly picking up the clothing items and running down to the laundry room. I placed the worn out items in the washing machine and poured a more than reasonable amount of detergent into the compartment,before starting the machine and returning to Piper's room to pack the rest of her bottoms.

In the middle of hanging up Piper's pants, I hear the bathroom door slowly open. Piper stepped out in a red towel covering her little body. Her hair appeared a darker shade of blonde since it was wet and stuck to the sides of her face like glue. Her innocent eyes met mine before they darted to the floor. She shifted her arms uncomfortably and her skin turned pale. Well this was awkward. I cleared my throat and zipped back up Piper's bag,

"Sorry Hun, just thought I could help you unpack and try to find you an outfit for a restaurant I thought we could go to...". Wile Piper was in the shower, I brainstormed the idea to go to one of my favorite restaurants and really get to know Piper. I want to be the best mom to Piper ever. I know it must be hard for her to have been in an orphanage for four years so, I decided to make up for her loss time somehow. Maybe while at Toast, I can find out a little about her birth family.

My thoughts were interrupted by Piper's small voice saying, "Oh,that's cool". Thank God she didn't mind. I didn't mean to invade her privacy so early.

"Yeah,you don't have much clothes", I said as I glanced at her barely filled closet. Most of her clothes consisted of blue jeans or leggings and plain t-shirts. That's when the greatest idea popped into my head.

"Maybe we can go shopping tomorrow?", I asked slowly. That would be our first mother-daughter time if she says yes! I stared into Piper's beautiful brown eyes hoping with every inch of me that she said yes. Piper slowly nodded her head and gave me an adorable smile. I squealed and smiled as I finally felt like a mother. Piper actually wanted to hang out with me like how I would hang out with my own mother ! Did I mention how big my smile was? All I wanted to do was hug Piper tight and never let to but, as I saw on her legs , she was dripping wet. I glanced at the puddle that was forming under her small feet. From the corner of my eye, small red lines caught my eye. They started by the bottom of her thighs and trailed up behind the towel. Piper's eyes burned into my face as I quickly darted my eyes back up. I offered her a small smile and quickly exited.

Shit.

Shit.

Shit.

That was the only word that ran through my mind as I ran my fingers through the ends of my hair. I should've known. Piper was twelve years old but looked ten at most. She felt like a feather to lift and, had stick legs. Why couldn't I see earlier?