The Broken Orphan [Being Rewritten]

Sixty Nine-Stitches

***Warning: if you don't like blood or medical topics then skip this chapter****

Luke

I smile at the family standing on my porch. Penelope says a quick 'hi' to Evangeline and waves, making me smile wider. Her mothers finally step up the small flight of stairs that connect to the porch, and I open the door wider.

"Hey, Penelope," I greet her. A light blush flows across her cheeks, probably from remembering the last time we saw each other since she was crying in front of me.
"Hey, Dr. Clark," Penelope says embarrassedly. I smile at her and look up to the two women behind her.
"Hi, I'm Luke Clark." I say introducing myself.
"Hello, I'm Cameron Taylor, and this is Emily, my wife, and you've already met our daughter, Penelope ." The taller woman says.

Cameron wears a nice black button down shirt and dark skinny jeans, while Emily wears a white, flower printed dress; Cameron seeming to be less feminine than Emily. Emily's hair is black and so long it's down to her waist, while Cameron's is blonde and cut short.

They come off as an adorable couple that have totally different interest but compliment each other's non-interest, and Penelope looks to be a perfect mix between the two; wearing a white dress with black converses.

"Nice to meet you, this is my daughter Evangeline." I say, proudly looking to her. "Please, come in. Make yourselves at home." I say invitingly, moving out of the way in the process.

They step through the door, being greeted and sniffed by Nugget almost right away, who I instantly apologize for. Thankfully, they laugh the apology off and let him sniff them while they pet him.

I smile as Evangeline and Penelope begin talking off to the side happily. It makes me happy to see her finally being able to enjoy someone's company other than Grayson, Sophie, or I.

I lead everyone to the kitchen so we can have more room to spread out. I quickly look to the oven to check how much more time is left until the food is done. Seeing that it still had ten minutes left, I turn back to everyone else.

Cameron and Emily's eyes wander around the house, and I instantly become thankful that we had time to clean before they came over.

"Your home is lovely." Emily says, her voice thick with a British accent.
"Thank you," I say happily. My eyes flick to Evangeline, whose eyes are wider than saucers, gawking at Emily. Penelope and I chuckle at her lightly, causing Emily and Cameron to look to her.

"Have you never heard a British accent before?" I question her. She blushes lightly and shakes her head.
"Not in person, no." She says bashfully
"There's a first for everything." Cameron says light heartedly

Evangeline and Penelope continue their conversation once again, and I smile at their happiness.

"Dad," Evangeline calls to me, causing me to look to her smiling face. "I'm going to show Penelope my room."

A sense of pride rises inside of me from her becoming more assertive instead of always asking for permission. My shy, apprehensive little girl has grown so much as a person.

"Okay," I nod.

The two happy girls climb the stairs, leaving us adults alone in the kitchen. I look to see Cameron and Emily have become preoccupied with petting Nugget, who is loving all of the attention.

"Thank you, for coming on such short notice."I thank them. Their focus turns back to me and Nugget trots to the living room. "With as kind as Penelope is, I was sure her family was the same way, but I had to make sure."
"Oh, you're welcome." Emily says as she nods in understanding. "We are the same way. We always like to meet the family before Penelope stays the night anywhere."
"I'm glad I'm not the only one." I laugh light heartedly, "I'm still figuring out this parenting thing."