The Last Wish (Austin Carlile Father/Of Mice And Men)

Chapter 8

Austin's POV

"Well," a woman started. "We looked at the possible foster families that she could go to around your area. There aren't any that are not already filled. And none look like anybody is leaving anytime soon."

"Then we looked at possible care homes for her. The only one that was not full is St. Joseph's Orphanage of Hollywood," another woman finished.

"But have you seen it? It's falling apart!" I practically yelled.

"The only other option is to move her further away," Dave said.

I sighed. "I guess that'd be best option then."

Dave sighed. "It's the only option, unless someone adopts her."

I shook my head. I couldn't do that. A tour bus was no place for a child. Right? She'd never have someone watching her on stage, unless we had somebody do it, which shouldn't be too hard. But she'd never be looked after during parties, unless somebody stayed sober each time. Ariel would be moving around constantly, but at such a young age, it wouldn't matter. Besides, we'd all grown attached. And who knew how bad the home would be?

Everything Tony said was floating around in my head. Abusive homes, and young girls forced to practically be maids. The home might've even been overcrowded, with not enough food to go around. Even my own experiences in an orphanage; the hunger, the clutter, the loneliness.

"Wait!" I said, loudly, before they got the chance to take Ariel away. "What if I adopted her?"

"Austin, are you really sure this is the best idea?" Dave asked me. "I mean, with tour and everything, wouldn't it be a bit much?"

"Nothing I can't handle. I've been in an orphanage myself, and I'm not letting her go through that."

"Well, we'll do further background checks if this is what you really want to do. They should find any possible complication," another woman finished.

"But that brings us back to square one. Where is she going to stay? The process for adoption can last a year," David sighed.

The group of people who showed up for Ariel's case started talking over each other, attempting to discuss where Ariel could possibly be.

"Wait!" I shouted over the noise. "What if I keep her with me?"

A lady rolled her eyes. "Sorry, Sir, but that's not allowed.

I sighed. "It doesn't look like you've got much of an option now. Just bend one rule, and then Ariel will have a home."

She sighed, exasperated. "Once again, that's agai-"

"Maybe we could figure something out," Dave said, and I smiled at him. "I could visit, or call and check up on them from time to time to make sure everything's going smoothly. Objections?" He didn't let anybody say anything. "Good. Then it's settled. Austin, what's the easiest way to contact you?"

I was a bit shocked, but I still answered. "Uh, phone?"

"Alright, can you give me your number, and I'll call you later to figure out the details?" He asked, and I nodded, reciting the ten digits slowly so he could write them down. "Good, I'll be in touch. In the mean time, prepare to be a daddy," he told me with a smile.

I returned the grin, before turning around and walking back to the car. I could tell it was shaking from all the bouncing around everybody was doing. I opened the door, quickly sitting in the passengers seat and slamming the door shut to escape the heat.

"Austin!" Ariel cheered.

"Hey, Princess!" I smiled at her, gripping her tiny waist and placing her on my lap.