Flaws

4

"So how are you feeling?" Ms. West asked Anastasia as she helped pack the little girl's bags.

"I don't know." She shrugged. "Scared."

"Why are you scared?"

"Because he might change his mind and leave me."

Ms. West wanted to promise her that Mr. Hood wouldn't ever do such a thing, but she knew good and well to never make promises you couldn't keep. So she settled on helping the girl out some more, packing what little clothing she had into a bag along with some of her other belongings.

"I don't want to go." Anastasia mumbled, breaking the silence as she tried to fight back her tears.

"What? Why not? I thought you were happy!" Ms. West asked softly, stopping what she was doing so that Anastasia had her full, undivided attention.

"I don't want to go!"

"Can you tell me why?"

Anastasia shook her head no, earning a sigh out of the elder woman.

"Is it Mr. Hood? Did he say anything or make you feel uncomfortable? It's alright to tell me, I promise."

Anastasia shook her head no again, giving Ms. West some sense of relief.

"Is it what you said earlier, about him leaving you?"

Anastasia stayed quiet, telling the woman that she was right.

"Everything's gonna be fine, Anastasia."

"I don't want to start over again, Ms. West. I like it here."

"You'll like it even more over there I bet."

"No I won't."

"Really? I would. This way you won't have to deal with Ms. Barnes' yelling at the T.V. or Henry's temper tantrums. Sounds pretty good to me."

Anastasia giggled a little bit, rubbing her tears away.

"Did you like Mr. Hood?"

"Yes."

"Was he nice?"

"Yes."

"Did he scare you?"

"Well, he's very big!"

"Big people aren't scary! It's the little ones you have to look out for!"

Anastasia squealed as Ms. West ticked her tummy, creating a happier atmosphere for the both of them.

"I'm sure you'll have more fun with Mr. Hood than you have had in your entire life."

"Thank you Ms. West."

"You're welcome, sweetheart. Now come on, he'll be here any moment."

Taking her hand, she walked Anastasia and her bag down the stairs and to the common room where she would wait for a bit before Mr. Hood checked in.

Mr. Hood, however, was also freaking out. He must have checked her new booster seat about a million times before deeming it safe. He had been nervously chipping at his black nail polish all morning, fiddling with his phone to pass the time, and trying to survive the boys and his family calling and texting him every five minutes, asking if he'd picked her up yet.

Calum and the boys had decided it would be best if they let her settle in before she met any of them besides his roommate, Ashton, but it didn't change the fact that they wanted updates every two seconds. Especially since they'd been through the whole process as well (not to mention that they assembled all of the very difficult IKEA furniture for her, which is the ultimate testament of their love).

When the time came around to finally pick her up, he nervously drove over to the orphanage where Anastasia was, following the directions that Diana had given him. He couldn't manage to keep his nerves under wraps, though. He kept tapping on the wheel, fixing his mirror so that it was fixated on the booster seat behind him, changing the station of the radio every two seconds, and more chipping at his nail polish.

But eventually, when he rolled up to the large house, he knew that he'd have to be an adult and handle the situation like one. So he turned off his car and got out, holding a folder containing everything he'd need to prove that he was exactly who he said he was, and Anastasia's adoption papers. It was really happening. He couldn't believe it.

Walking in, he went up to the receptionist and flashed a smile, earning a frown in return. This didn't exactly help Calum's nerves.

"Hello, I'm here to pick up Anastasia?" He began, trying his hardest to keep eye contact with the bitter looking woman. "My name is Calum T. Hood, I have everything you need―"

"Anastasia!" The woman interrupted, yelling so loudly that Calum flinched, along with everyone within a two mile radius of the woman. "Anastasia, get down here now!"

The young man's eyes widened in shock at the woman, finding it appalling that the other kids had to deal with this every single day.

"Identification, please." She stated monotonously.

Taking it out, he handed it to her and let her examine it before deeming it acceptable. She then demanded the adoption papers, checking them over before stamping them and filing them away.

"He's right over there, Anastasia." He heard a semi-familiar voice say quietly from behind him.

Turning around, he saw his new daughter and Ms. West, her holding her hand and pointing in his direction. Their eyes met, and he offered her a soft smile, noticing that she had tear tracks on her face.

Walking over to the pair, he crouched down to her level and brought his thumbs up to her chubby cheeks, wiping them softly, yet tentatively.

"Hey, little bug," He found himself saying softly. "You ready?"

He couldn't really imagine what she was going through at the moment. Everyone talks about how gruelling the adoption process is for the person adopting, but never for the child being adopted. They were being taken out of an environment that they were used to and thrusted into a life full of strangers, being expected to act like everything was okay, and that they could automatically adjust to their new life. But Calum knew that that wasn't what it was like at all. It was going to be hard as hell on the poor kid, and he was going to do anything he could to make it easier on her.

Anastasia nodded slowly, looking back up at Ms. West before hugging the woman's legs, and thanking her. The woman just smiled and hugged her back (as best as she could) and bid the little girl goodbye, as Calum took her bag and slung it over his shoulder. After the pair were done, he sent Anastasia a reassuring smile and offered out his hand, which she timidly took.

And with that, the pair walked out of the orphanage, and off to their new lives.