AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Oh, and the one before that, too.
And sure, despite telling her it’s the one place I found that didn’t charge a fortune for rent, she’ll turn her nose up at my dingy apartment. But if I get this job, at least I can keep her entertained and keep the lights on.
Problem solved. Lies secured. What could possibly go wrong?
Dancing my way around stuck gum and puddles, I pass several clusters of row houses before climbing the steps to the group home two at a time.
I bump the old door open with my hip. There’s an antique smell to the building that’s as familiar as it is calming. It somehow pairs well with every other scent in the house, too. Like my friend Dorthea’s perfume, or Ricardo’s cooking.
Today, however, it’s blended with the starchy scent of construction paper and glue sticks, and I breathe in deeply, committing it to memory.
“Happy birthday!” my favorite tiny humans shout before attacking me in the hallway. The little ones surround me with smiles, waving their handmade cards as we enter the front room where we welcome potential adoptive parents.
“What!” I smack my forehead with the heel of my hand, teasing them. “I totally forgot.”
Giggles abound as I tuck the glitter- and paint-covered cards into the front pocket of my bag, gasping at the various party decorations strung about. There’s a balloon tied to the back of the farthest chair that reads, Happy 52nd Birthday!
Tarra crosses her arms beside me, appearing far older than her seventeen years with a face accented by the makeup I bought her.
“Sorry,” she says, peering up at the light flickering above the space. “They were out of thirtieth balloons.”
“It’s perfect. I love it so much, you guys.”
She squirms when I wrap my arm around her neck and squeeze, but her laughter and the rest of their beaming faces sucker-punch me in the gut like my insides are being squeezed by a rainbow and bathed in a ray of sunlight.
“Pen?” My friend Dorthea calls from the wide kitchen window overlooking the sitting room, with sweat and streaks of pink marking her brow. “I thought you weren’t coming by until after your interview?”
“Just stopping in for a sec. I couldn’t resist bringing a snack for my gremlins.” They grin as I follow them into the open living room where an old TV is playing a kid’s show.
“Hang on, hang on,” I warn, dodging their grabby hands while setting the box on the worn kitchen table on the other side of the room.
Despite my best reupholstering efforts, the laminate is peeling up at the corners and the rusty metal legs squeak whenever I touch it. But much like the patched-up couches and the TV, it’s been handed down or found on the streets.
“Nellie!” Mable, a young Topican girl with long wavy hair, hugs me from behind.
“There you are.” I squeeze her arms before turning to see her tan face beaming up at me.
“You look so pretty. I bet that boy liked you a lot.”
She and Tarra had a hand in picking out my outfit today, so I hate to disappoint her when I say, “Thanks, bug. But I don’t think it’s gonna work out.”
“Aw. How come?”
I spare her the gritty details of my lackluster dating life. “I guess he ended up liking someone else.”
Her brow furrows. “That’s not very Prince Charming of him.”
Given the duds I’ve been dating lately, I’m beginning to believe the whole ‘white knight’ ship has sailed.
I give the room a quick once over, making sure none of the other kiddos see me slip the packaged sugar cookie I bought especially for her from my blazer pocket. When I place it in her hand, her big green eyes widen before she dashes off to inhale the morsel.
“You spoil her,” Ricardo, the group home’s self-proclaimed chef, and Dorthea’s husband, says from behind me.
I nudge him with the tip of my elbow. “Do not.”
He quirks a brow, knowing as well as I do that I favor the young girl. “Bad date, huh?”
“You’re the nosiest man I’ve ever met, did you know that?”
