Shattered

Chapter 7

TW: brief scene of abuse.

Sorry if there are too many trigger warnings, I'm just worried that I will accidentally trigger someone, so I want to be careful.

Please let me know what you think of this book and if there is anything I should change or go into more detail with.

One last thing; I'm sorry the book is kind of boring so far; it will get more interesting in the next chapter.

Stay strong and I hope you enjoy!

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The woman who was still holding the child shut the door, set the kid down, and looked at me.

I had a bad feeling about her, but I ignored it, telling myself I was being paranoid.

"Get to work." The woman spat; all signs of niceness gone completely.

Nope, not paranoia, definitely NOT paranoia.

All the kids were very young, the oldest looking to be around 10.

So, I went up to two very young kids who were fighting and sat on my knees next to them.

They immediately stopped fighting and looked at me.

"Hi, I'm Adeline," I said, trying to sound normal, "What are your names?"

"I'm Alisha." The girl with a red bow in her hair said.

"I'm Toby." The boy with a dinosaur on his shirt said.

"What are you guy doing?" I asked, glad that they probably didn't know what anxiety was.

"He stole my Barbie!" Alisha yelled.

"Did not!" Toby yelled back.

This immediately escalated into a screaming match between the two.

"Hey, hey, hey," I said calmly, getting their attention, "Let's not yell, ok? Here, come sit."

They both sat, arms folded, across from each other.

"Why don't we play something else?" I suggested.

"No!" Alisha yelled, "I want my Barbie back!"

This is going to be a long night.

*The next day*

When Officer Thompson said I was going to a "nice new home," this is not what I expected.

Nobody here was nice, and it didn't really feel much different from the last place I was in.

At least when I was with my parents there weren't 20 other children screaming 24/7.

Not that I have a thing against kids, but these kids never listened, and the woman running the orphanage did nothing.

And when I say nothing, I mean nothing.

She acted like the kids weren't even there.

She went on with her day like everything was fine, and there was nobody else in the house.

So, I was left to take care of the kids.

Within the first hour of being there, I memorized all the kids' names, learned what they liked and didn't like, and how to get them to cooperate.

Turns out, all they wanted was love.

They wanted hugs and attention, and that's what I gave them.

I didn't care that I barely knew them.

Just because I didn't have someone who cared about me, doesn't mean they shouldn't.

So, I did my best to show them that someone cared.

Except for the babies, we all played games together, managing to stay relatively calm.

When it was time for bed, I brought the kids to their rooms, making sure they were comfortable before going to the room the babies were in.

And that's where I stayed all night, awake, trying to keep the three of them from crying.

Again, all they wanted was attention.

At around 6:30, I had to get ready for school, so I went to the bathroom and got ready for the day.

When I went downstairs, I saw the lady at the table on her phone.

"Where have you been?" She spat.

"Getting ready, ma'am." I mumbled, already feeling the anxiety in my chest.

And within an instant, she was holding me against the wall with her hand around my throat.

"You do not talk back to me," She seethed, "Do you understand?"

"Y-yes." I choked out, desperately trying to get air into my lungs as tears gathered in my eyes.

"Yes, what?" She spat, squeezing tighter.

"Yes, ma'am." I said, barely being able to speak.

She let go, making me immediately gasp, thankful to have access to air again.

"Cover your neck, and make sure the kids eat." She spat, going back to the stairs with a bottle of whisky in hand.

So, I got to work.

I made food for all the kids, seeing that there was barely enough.

I wanted to make sure the kids had enough, so I left the extra for them, deciding that I didn't need to eat today, and after what just happened, I didn't want to anyway.

The whole time I was making the food, I kept telling myself not to cry.

A few tears did escape, but I refused to let myself break down.

By the time the kids were up, everything was ready, I had put make-up on my neck, and I managed to put on a smile.

While the kids ate, I got the babies ready, trying my best to make their formula.

Considering I had never done it before, it was quiet the struggle, but in the end, I managed to make it correctly, and feed them without a problem.

After everyone was ready, I realized they had to go to school too.

So, I called my school, telling them I wasn't feeling good, and I wouldn't be at school today.

Thankfully, Hunter had put in a school excuse for me, which got me out of school for the rest of the week.

I walked the kids to school, met their teachers which didn't help my anxiety, and went back to the orphanage.

When I got back, the orphanage lady was waiting for me.

"Where were you this time?" She asked, anger very clear.

"I'm sorry, ma'am." I said, not knowing if that was the right answer.

"Answer my question!" She yelled, hitting a lamp off a table, making me flinch, "Where were you?"

"I was taking the kids to school, ma'am." I said, trying not to sound nervous.

She looked at me for a minute before huffing.

"Whatever," She said, "Now go and shut those kids up; they're giving me a headache."

And with that, she went back upstairs.