Adele's Stories

Laura balanced one child on her knee and held the other close to her chest to quiet the crying. She bounced her knee up and down trying to get little Viola to burp after she had just fed her. Once she did, while still holding the crying Jacob to her chest, she placed Viola in the playpen with the two other kids. Laura took Jacob to the rocking chair and began to rock while humming softly. 

When he finally fell asleep she took him into the small room next door where the cribs were for napping. Right now Jacob was the only one napping though. Laura collapsed onto the couch and watched the three kids in the playpen play. 

Laura volunteers at her town’s local orphanage. So many children are now in foster care that they don’t have enough people to work at the orphanage and not enough money to pay them. The orphanage was run by the head matron and volunteers alone. Laura worked with the babies to one year olds. She worked from five to eight then someone else came to put the kids to bed and watch them through the night. Laura looked at her watch. Seven-thirty. 

She sighed and took out her book. During the day she worked as a receptionist at a sales company. Her real goal was to become a saleswomen. She was really good with people and it paid more. With one eye on the kids and one on her book Laura began to read. Twenty minutes later the door opened and Anna walked into the nursery. Anna was the one who took the next shift on Thursdays and Laura’s best friend. Laura looked at her watch. 

“You’re early.” she said standing up. Before Anna could respond Jacob began crying. Laura began to head for the door but Anna held up a hand. 

“I’ll get him. You go home.” she said heading for the other room. 

“But my shift doesn’t end for another ten minutes.”

“I know. But you have that really important interview tomorrow for the new sales position at your work. You need to go home, get some sleep and get ready for that interview.” Anna said. Laura hesitated before grabbing her jacket and purse. She knew better than to argue with Anna. 

“Thank you!” She called as she closed the door behind her. She waved to the head matron as she passed her office and opened the front door and stepped out into the crisp autumn night.  

When she got home she made herself a quick snack before retiring to her room and crawling into bed. The next morning she took a shower, dried her light brown hair and placed it into a high bun. Next she put on her makeup then she put on tights and a black pencil skirt with a white blouse. She grabbed her keys, purse and jacket and slipped on her heels as she walked out the door. 

Laura sat at the receptionist desk waiting for something to print when a man in a sharp suit and carrying a briefcase came in. He leaned over the desk to talk to her. 

“Hi. I’m George Freedman. I have an interview at ten for the sales position.” he said. Laura tensed. She managed a smile. 

“Of course. Have a seat. The manager will be with you in a minute.” She motioned to the row of chairs next to the desk. He thanked her and took a seat. The paper finished printing and Laura stood up. She went into the next room where the sales team was and delivered the paper to its owner. On her way out she stopped by her manager’s office. 

“Mrs. Joyce, your ten o’clock is here.” she said. Rochella Joyce looked up from her computer, pieces of black fly away hair from her bun framing her face. She smiled. 

“Thank you Laura.” 

She nodded and headed back to her desk. A few minutes later Mrs. Joyce came out and led George Freedman into the conference room. Laura watched them go, her shoulders tense. All through their meeting Laura worried. Her interview was at the end of the work day so she waited apprehensively as more and more people trickled in also applying for the job. 

Finally the day was up and the last person left the conference room. She watched them walk out her mind reeling then her boss’s voice brought her back to reality. 

“Laura. It’s your turn.” she said. 

Laura smiled softly then followed her into the conference room shutting the door softly behind her. 

All the way home Laura gripped the steering wheel so hard her knuckles were white. She reviewed the interview in her head. As far as she knew she had done pretty well. And her boss knew her pretty well. She knew her work habits and her personality. All in all Laura thought she had a pretty good chance. But then there were so many other people that were interviewed. What if one of them was way better? One of them definitely had to be better. And what if she accidentally said something wrong and she didn’t know it? 

Laura took a deep breath and tried to push it from her mind. Mrs. Joyce said they’d find out in two months. That felt like an oddly long time. Laura decided to just try and forget about it. She put her mind onto her volunteer work instead. She had ten minutes to get home, change, and head to the orphanage for her shift.

Once she changed into more comfortable clothes she headed back out. When she got to the orphanage Mrs. Embassy, the head matron waved her into her office. Mrs. Embassy was an older woman with completely white hair never seen out of a bun and twinkling light blue eyes. She had a kind heart and loved children. 

“Laura, I know you don’t volunteer on Saturdays, but I was wondering if you could come in to help with the six to nine year olds. One of my volunteers just told me she’s moving and can’t come any more.” 

“Of course Mrs. Embassy. I’d love to.” 

Mrs. Embassy clasped her hands together and smiled. “Oh thank you Laura. You start at seven then end at ten and Anna will be there to help you.”  Laura nodded and headed for the babies. 

When that fateful Saturday arrived Laura found herself nervous. She was so used to babies. She didn’t know how to take care of six to nine year olds. At least Anna would be there.       

Laura opened the door to the children’s room and walked in slowly. Anna was in the bathroom helping two of the kids brush their teeth. Laura examined the room. It was bigger than the baby’s room, with two bathrooms, a wide play area, a big space off to the side with cots that had chests at their feet with a chair next to the head of each bed and a curtain next to each bed for privacy. There was a bay window in the play area next to a bookshelf. 

There were about ten to twelve children total. Laura lingered by the door for a minute. Anna came out of the bathroom behind the kids running to the play area. She came over to Laura. 

“Hey! I’m so glad you’re here, I don’t think I could ever handle all these kids by myself.” she smiled. Laura smiled back. 

“I love helping out. So we just get them ready for bed and watch over them until the next people come to finish out the night?” 

Anna nodded. “Yep.” Laura sighed. 

“I feel bad for these kids. Growing up, what they need is stability. Not five hundred different people telling them what to do.” she shook her head. Anna nodded. 

“I know. It’s gotta be hard.” She was quiet for a minute before letting out a sigh and speaking again. “They go to bed at eight so we let them play until then.” 

Laura nodded and looked around. Most of the kids were in the play area, some were playing on their cots, but there was one little girl sitting alone on the bay window reading a book. She was about seven with long black hair that curled at the bottom. She had rosy cheeks and light blue eyes. Laura went over and sat across from her. 

“What are you reading?” she asked. The girl looked up briefly then went back to her book. 

“Little Women.” 

“That’s a very sophisticated book for someone your age.” Laura said appraisingly. 

“I know.” Her eyes had narrowed a little. Laura could tell she was getting annoyed so she left her alone. When the rest of the kids finally went to bed the little girl remained at the bay window reading and Anna didn’t say anything. Laura questioned her about that. 

“Oh, that’s Rose Hill. She got here a week ago. Her parents died in a car crash. She was in the car as well. When children first get here we’re more gentle and lenient. Especially if they went through something like she did.” Anna said. Laura nodded in understanding. Poor girl. She’s so young to be going through something like that. 

At around nine forty Laura could see Rose struggling to keep her eyes open, but determined not to close them. Laura gave Anna a look and she nodded. Laura walked over to Rose. She knelt down in front of her and gently pressed her book down. 

“Hi Rose. My name’s Laura.” she said, giving her a smile. Rose just stared at her. “Well Rose it’s getting pretty late. I think you should get some sleep.” 

Rose shook her head. “I’m not tired. I want to keep reading.” she said, though her drooping eyes said otherwise.  

“Well, how about you get snuggled up in bed and I’ll read to you until you fall asleep.” Laura suggested. Rose didn’t answer for a moment then the tiredness won and she nodded. Laura stood up, took her hand and led her to her bed. She tucked Rose in, then settled into the chair next to her bed and began to read Little Women, starting where Rose left off.  

Rose yawned, then interrupted her. “You know. My mother gave me that book. She would read it to me at night and explain it to me when I didn’t understand it.” Then her eyes fluttered a few times and she fell asleep. Laura knew it was just the sleepiness talking, but she felt touched that Rose shared this bit of information with her. 

Laura put the book on the chest at the foot of her bed and walked over to Anna who was sitting in a corner. Laura sat next to her and smiled. “She’s really a sweet girl. She’s just hurting.”  

Anna nodded in understanding. “I’m hoping through time she’ll open up more. Start playing with the other kids. I’ve suggested to Mrs. Embassy that some of the children with more painful memories, like Rose, should start seeing a therapist. You know someone that they can talk to about their pain, but Mrs. Embassy said they couldn’t afford it.” She shook her head. Laura thought for a moment. 

“Maybe we should do a fundraiser. Or search for an investor. Some way to get this place more money.” 

“Maybe we should make a commercial. You know one of the sad ones with Amazing Grace playing in the background.” Anna smiled and Laura chuckled. 

“Hey you never know it could work.” Anna shrugged. Suddenly Laura heard crying coming from the sleeping area. She walked over and saw Rose tossing and turning in her bed with tears streaming down her cheeks. Laura reacted instantly. She sat on the bed and pulled Rose to her, holding her close and stroking her hair.

“Hey, hey. You’re alright, everything is alright. It was just a dream.” she said soothingly. 

“But it wasn’t a dream! It was real! I was there! I had to watch it again!” Rose cried into her chest. Laura’s heart went out to the poor girl as she held her closer. Laura held her until she fell asleep again. She felt tears pricking her own eyes as she walked back to Anna. Soon the volunteers to take the next shift came quietly into the room and Anna and Laura had to leave. Laura took one last look at Rose as she left. 

She stopped by the head matron’s office on her way out. “Mrs. Embassy. I’d love to come again next Saturday if that’s alright. And maybe every Saturday after that?” 

Mrs. Embassy smiled. “That would be wonderful Laura. Thank you.” 

Laura nodded and smiled. Anna was waiting for her by the doors. “What was that about?” she asked. 

“Let’s just say you’re going to be seeing me every Saturday from here on out.” Laura responded. Anna gave her a knowing smile, more of a beam actually, and put her arm around Laura’s shoulders. 

Laura typed away at her computer at the receptionist’s desk on Monday when the door opened and Anna came in shivering and holding a plate of brownies. “Can you believe it’s already snowing? And it’s only September.” she said, shaking her head. Laura smiled. 

“I know it’s crazy. So to what do I owe the pleasure of this visit?” she asked. Anna pretended to be hurt. 

“Is it so crazy to believe I just want to pay a visit to my best friend at her work with brownies?” She placed the brownies on Laura’s desk. 

“Yes.” she said without hesitation. 

“Wow okay.” Anna put her hands on her hips. Laura raised her eyebrows. “Okay fine. I wanted to talk about Rose.” 

“What about her?” Laura asked as she took the saran wrap off the brownies and took a bite out of one. 

“Just the fact that you were able to get her to sleep in about ten minutes when it used to take me over an hour.” Anna said. 

“Maybe you’re just not as good with kids as me.” Laura teased as she took another bite. Anna rolled her eyes. 

“Yeah right. There’s definitely something else going on.” Anna said matter of factly. Laura shrugged and finished off her brownie. 

“Maybe she just needed a shoulder to cry on. Someone to comfort her. What do you want me to say?” 

Anna sighed. “I guess I’m not really sure.” She leaned against Laura’s desk and stared off into space. Laura took this as a chance to keep working. Finally Anna spoke again, brushing her blonde hair out of her face. 

“Sooo, when do you find out that you got the promotion!” she said excitedly. Laura rolled her eyes. 

“If I get the promotion-”

“When.” Anna corrected. Laura rolled her eyes again. 

“They said it would be about two months. I’m really trying to forget about it until then, so let’s just move on.” Laura said. Anna scoffed. 

“Fine. I have to get back to work anyway. See you later.” she took a brownie as she left and Laura waved while not taking her eyes off her computer. 

That Saturday when Laura came into the kid’s room Rose came up to her and handed her her book. 

“Will you read to me again?” she asked shyly. Laura couldn’t help smiling wide. 

“Of course.” she said and followed her to the window. Rose snuggled into the pillows and leaned her head against the window as Laura read. Rose was looking out the window and Laura noticed a single tear slide down her cheek. Laura stopped reading and studied her for a moment. Rose didn’t seem to notice. 

“What do you see out that window?” Laura asked softly. Rose sat up startled and wiped her cheek with the back of her hand. 

“Um, I see the parking lot, and a few cars…” 

“What do the cars look like?” Laura asked. 

“Um, a lot of them are white. But my favorite one is that dark red one. It’s my favorite color.” she said pointing at the car. 

“Hey, that’s my car!” Laura said laughing. Rose smiled softly. The first smile she had seen from her. 

“It is?”

 Laura nodded. “And red is my favorite color too.”

Rose smiled a little wider. “Do you want me to keep reading?” Laura asked. Rose nodded and settled back into the pillows this time watching Laura. As Anna and Laura were walking out together Anna looked at her in awe. 

“You made her smile. I have never seen her smile before. What are you, magic?” she said. Laura laughed. 

“No. I guess we just have something special… a bond.” 

“A bond.” Anna echoed. From that Saturday on Laura and Rose read together until they finished the book. When Rose picked out another book for them to read Laura suggested she go play with the other kids. Rose hesitated a while before agreeing and joined two girls in a game of house. Anna watched her wide eyed and mouth open. Laura rolled her eyes. 

Two months later Laura was at her desk waiting for something to print and softly humming to herself. Mrs. Joyce came out of her office and came over to Laura smiling. 

“Good morning Mrs. Joyce.” she said good naturedly. 

“Good morning Laura. I have some good news. I’m giving you the sales position. You start in three days.” 

Laura looked at her frozen in shock. Mrs. Joyce laughed and walked back into her office. Laura beamed and spun in a circle. She felt like squealing like a little girl. She immediately called Anna. 

“Anna! Anna, you’ll never guess what just happened!” she said breathlessly. 

“Laura, oh Laura I’m so glad you called something awful just happened!” Laura could tell she was crying. 

“What? What is it? Anna, what’s wrong?” 

Laura was not prepared for her answer. She grabbed her coat and keys said she’d be right there and asked permission to leave early. 

“Well I suppose so. Is everything alright?” Mrs. Joyce asked. Laura shook her head. 

 “No. I don’t think so.” 

Laura hurried to the orphanage and when she pulled up she almost screamed. Smoke was rising from the building and firefighters were running in and out. Laura joined the rest of the volunteers who had huddled together at the front of the building with the children. Some were comforting the children, some were giving them food and water. Mrs. Embassy was standing at the front watching in horror. 

Laura searched desperately for a particular little girl. She grabbed Anna’s arm and squeezed hard when she saw a firefighter come running out carrying Rose. She ran to her side. 

“Rose.” she gasped and pulled her close. She let the paramedics make sure she was okay then took her back to the group of people and held her close. Rose began to cry and Laura comforted her while trying not to cry herself. In a few hours everything had died down. One of the firefighters was talking to Mrs. Embassy. When they were finished she addressed the group of people. 

“The firefighters said the fire started by a candle in the six to nine year old room. One of the children must have accidentally knocked it down. Thankfully they were able to contain it to that room and no one was hurt. It’s going to be a while before that room is fixed up. I was hoping that some of you would volunteer to foster some of the children, just until the room is fixed. And they’d still come here for school of course. And if you can’t we can just have them stay in one of the other rooms for a while. But I just thought it might be easier if some of you could take them. Any volunteers?” 

Laura thought for a minute. She had a pretty decent guest room at her house. And she just got a promotion so she’d have plenty of money to take care of another person, if only for a little while. Before she knew what she was doing she was volunteering. 

“I can take Rose.” she called out. Mrs. Embassy smiled. 

“Thank you Laura. Please proceed inside and we can fill out the paperwork.” 

Laura took Rose’s hand as they followed Mrs. Embassy inside. Rose looked up at her. 

“Really?” she asked. 

“Yes. Yes really.” Laura couldn’t help but beam at the little girl. More people started volunteering and soon every six to nine year old had a foster home. They let them go in the room to see if any possessions of the kids were still intact. A few of Rose’s clothes that were at the bottom of the chest survived and to both of their reliefs, that brought tears to their eyes, her Little Women book was still perfectly fine since Rose stored it safely at the bottom of the chest. 

Laura promised to take her shopping at the end of the week when she got her first paycheck. When they got back to Laura’s house she showed her to the guest room and helped her put away her few things. Laura took them out to eat then helped Rose get ready for bed and tucked her in. 

The next day Laura took her back to the orphanage for school. She was relieved that her work hours lined up with the school hours. She walked Rose inside and hugged her goodbye. Laura was a little shocked to find her heart hurt when she had to leave her. She reminded herself that she would see her again and actually get to take her home. 

When the day finally came for their big shopping spree, Laura spoiled the little girl. She bought her everything that fit at every store they went to at the mall and even bought them ice cream on the way home. 

That night after Laura tucked Rose into bed she was making herself a midnight snack when she heard soft sobs coming from Rose’s room. She rushed over to her. She pulled her close and stroked her hair. 

“What’s the matter, Rose? Did you have a bad dream?” 

Rose shook her head. “It’s my fault.” she said sniffling. 

“What’s your fault?” Laura brushed the hair out of Rose’s face. 

“The fire. I knocked over the candle while trying to grab a book. After it fell and broke I got really scared and walked away. I thought it had gone out. I didn’t know anything caught on fire. I’m sorry!” she sobbed. Laura pulled her closer. 

“Oh Rose, it’s alright. You got scared, it’s alright to be scared. You didn’t know anything had happened, you didn’t mean to. It’s alright. Everything is okay.” She rubbed her back and held her until she fell back asleep. 

And it was in that moment, while holding the sleeping Rose, when Laura knew she loved that little girl. 

     Laura thought about it all day. She had trouble focusing at work and she finally made her decision on her way to pick up Rose. When they got home Laura sat her down on the couch. 

“Rose, how would you feel about living with me… forever?” she asked slowly. Rose watched her for a moment. 

“You mean… you want to adopt me?” she was almost whispering. Laura nodded. 

“Yes Rose. I want to adopt you. What do you say?” 

Rose beamed and flung herself into her arms. “I say yes!” she exclaimed. Laura laughed and began to cry along with Rose. 

“I love you so much my little Rose!”