Unfortunate Souls.

Chapter 3 - Boo.

But that was all in the past, she was in the past, because after certain point she just stopped talking to me, every time I'd walk by her on my way to the dining room she just brushed past me as if I didn't exist, it hurt, but somehow a part of me figured that friendships simply weren't meant to last. Especially ours.

And so it became the same with the rest of the girls, even the younglings, they all kind of simply lost contact with me, they wouldn't talk to me, or ask me to braid their hair, or read them a story at night anymore, and even if that did mean me staying up past midnight to make sure they'd all fall asleep, I missed it, way too much.

Things were changing around the orphanage, slowly of course, but I noticed it, the girls actually seemed to smile more in the morning, some days you could actually smell the sweet scent of pastries coming from the kitchen, along with giggles here and there from the girls who seemed to be leaving aside all type of schedule that was input in our systems at some point. I loved it, I adored seeing the smiles on their faces, the way they'd interact as if I life were some sort of dream, yet it seemed all too perfect, all too surreal to be true. It had been weeks since I last saw the directives, Mrs. Twist wasn't anywhere to be seen, but that was the usual, she must be in her office, plotting some way to make our weeks miserable.

What surprised me was noticing that the maids were no longer around, be it sweeping the floors, or knocking on our doors in the morning to start the day, scolding the girls for being too loud so early, running down the halls or not using their uniforms during adoption and interview hours. But I remembered, once from our many TV sessions; that believe it or not, was one hour sitting in front of the only TV in the orphanage, that a woman said: "don't invoke who isn't around". So I won't.

It was pretty fine by me, as long as the girls were happy, no doubt a smile would manage to appear on my face.

--

The day normally began at any hour now, since no one was actually knocking on our doors at five in the morning to make sure we were washed and dressed up for the interviews. What woke me up now were the giggles of the girls and the constant thumping of their little feet upon the wooden floor outside. With a soft smile, and a small groan, I stretched out every inch of my body to sit up and bed and look around the dusty room. Every time I sat up the first thing planted before me, was my reflection, the whole length mirror that was placed only a few steps away from my bed, cracked and shattered at the seams, but enough for me to stare back at my miserable state. Sometimes I could swear that when I smiled, she wouldn't even smile back.

Brushing my brown locks back and holding them together with a headband, a placed my hands on my face, trying to get rid of the slumber that consumed me. With a soft pat of the cheeks I gave myself one last look, a smile, for good luck. "C'mon Aria, just a few more days" I assured myself, and this time, she actually smiled back.

Knowing how the usual schedule went, the interviews and adoption hours starting early, but no one paying attention to me due to my age, I didn't even bother in putting on my uniform. Heading towards the worn out jacked up closet door; to open up and take out some clothes that had been donated a few years ago. I remember it perfectly, Mrs. Twist had come inside with the maids and about four to five boxes, and they started the fitting, the girls were all too excited, they'd never actually had any clothes of their own before, some of the happy over their hello kitty prints, other excited by their light up sneakers.

Isabel, Mary and I normally just stood aside, letting the girls pick first, so we could stay with the remaining few garments. When the girls were all allowed to go leave their new clothes in their closets, the three of us made our way to the last boxes.