Adopted (a Zalfie fanfic) [1]

Chapter 15

*Lily's POV*
It got to half 10 before I actually started to get ready. I jumped in the shower, shaved my legs and washed my hair and body. I was surprisingly quick. Then I got out, tied my dressing gown tight around me and rushed back to my bedroom. I got changed into a pair of red and white monochrome pants and a red collared blouse. I then brushed out my hair and blow dried it, leaving it to hang naturally about my shoulders.

I couldn't really be bothered doing makeup but I felt like Zoe and Alfie wouldn't like me as much if I didn't have it on so I wore some anyway. I applied some BB cream, powdered and bronzed my face and then added a little blusher. All I did for my eyes was add a bit of mascara before putting on some red lipgloss.

By the time I was ready, it was half 12 and still had an hour to kill before Zoe and Alfie came. I decided to log onto YouTube to help pass the time away. I soon started to get so nervous, I couldn't even concentrate on watching any videos. It was 1pm and they were going to arrive soon.

I logged off the computer and paced the length of my tiny bedroom over and over, rehearsing what I was going to say in my head. What if they asked questions about my past?

Ever since the day of the accident, I haven't once answered a single question to do with that day. Nor had I ever answered questions about the foster homes. It meant that I had to relive each and every painful moment over and over again, each time they asked. I was made to sit in the office for hours on end, with a social worker on one side of me and a child mental health specialist on the other. I would spend the entire time biting my lip and looking at the floor whilst they fired questions at me. They soon gave up with those weekly sessions and never bothered again. I never got the help I needed which is probably the reason I'm the way I am now.

Emma tried to get me to go through with it again the other month, promising it would be different. I agreed, even though I knew it would be harder. I put up with it for a few weeks until one day, the specialist suggested moving me to a different care home. I completely lost it and had a full on panic attack. It's never been mentioned again.

With all of this racing around my head, I had to sit down on the edge of my bed because I felt dizzy. Breathing in and out, I managed to control it and I soon felt back to normal. I lay down on the bed, looked up at the ceiling and sighed.

*Alfie's POV (For once!)*
We pulled up outside the care home and got out of the car. We were ten minutes early. "I'm excited." I said, grabbing Zoe's hand and holding it in mine.

"I'm nervous." She said, squeezing it. She had been quiet on the way and I was wondering why.

"Why little one?"I'm asked.

"What if she doesn't like us anymore?"

"Oh Zoe. Of course she's still going to like us, we're the exact same people she met two days ago. It'll be fine."

"But-" she said, before I cut her off. I turned to face her and placed both of my hands on her shoulders.

"Trust me Zo." I said, looking directly into her gorgeous blue eyes, the ones I fell in love with some time ago.

She smiled at me and nodded. We both took a deep breath and walked up the gravel path to the big doorway. Zoe knocked and Emma answered promptly, a beaming smile spread on her face. "Hello hello! Do come in!" She exclaimed. We said our hellos and were led through to the office. She sat us down in the same two seats as last time. She sat down at her desk and turned to us. "So, how are you both feeling?" She asked.

"We're both very excited, yet a little nervous." I answered. Zoe nodded in agreement.

"That's only normal. I think Lily is very nervous too. I've kept an eye on her for the past two days and she has been even more on edge than usual. She hasn't really ate much at mealtimes either, just nibbled." She said.

Zoe looked at me and then back at Emma. "Is that anything to be worried about?" She asked.

"I think she might settle a little when she gets to know you both a little better." Emma said.

"She already knows us quite well, we just need to get to know her." I said.

"Oh yes, I forgot about your job. I don't think it would be very fair to Lily or help her in anyway if you shove a camera in her face for the first few weeks, maybe even months." She replied. She sounded stern and you could tell she really cared about Lily.

"Don't worry, we're not going to. She won't be in any of our videos or vlogs until she feels comfortable to be. We're fine with it if she doesn't want to be in them at all, we understand." Zoe said.

"Thank you, I just really want this placement to work for her. It may be her last ever chance of finding a family before she's too old. If it doesn't work then to be honest, I don't think she'll get another opportunity."

"We'll make sure it works. We won't rush her into anything or push her out of her comfort zone, we'll be with her 100%." I said, squeezing Zoe's hand. "Just one question. Do you think she'll be home with us for Christmas?"

"Considering it's October and Christmas is only two months away, there's a very slim chance. It would be nearly impossible without rushing things and we don't want to do that, so no, sorry." Emma said. Zoe and I looked at each other and I could see a tear forming in Zoe's eye. I knew how much it meant to her to have a little family for Christmas.

"It's okay, we understand. When do you think she will be ready to move in with us?" Zoe asked, staying strong.

"Urmm, well you have nearly passed all the background checks and everything so it's really down to Lily. I reckon it's going to be January, February at the latest."

"Okay, that's fine." I said.

"Right, I'll go and get Lily." Emma said, standing up and opening the office door, before hesitating and closing it again. "I will stay to supervise and ease the pressure for you and Lily, as we know what happened last time, not that that was your fault. We all just want things to run smoothly this time."

We both nodded and she headed out the door to go and get Lily.

Authors Note:
Really long chapter! Took me forever to right it, Ahaha.

I Woke up this morning to 3k reads! That's probably not a lot to some but for me it's a big achievement. So thank you!

So, isalina123 came up with the idea of me doing a cover competition. From my attempt at a cover, you can tell I'm not the greatest at it. There are probably some very talented people reading this so if you think you can create a cover for my story that's better than mine(which honestly isn't hard), please enter!

It must feature the name of the book and my user name somewhere on it. The theme of the book must also be taken into consideration and the appearance of Lily if you are going to feature her (a description of her is given in the book's description).

Closing date: 31st January.
First place: The cover of my book (obviously), a shoutout and a spam of votes on your book(s).
Second and third place: A spam of votes on your book(s).
To enter: Just email me your entries and I will choose the one I like the most! (Message me on here if your entering and need my email address)

I would love it if you could enter! Thank you x