Those Cool Kids

The Life Of A Foster

Chapter Two
The Life of a Foster

"You look like shit." Jessie snores loudly, enough to make you realize she just did coke.

"Shut your mouth," I complain as I dry my hair with the cleanest hand towel I could find. Which is the equivalent of a yellowish and chopped out piece of cloth. "How was work?"

"Annoying," She inhales her last cigarette and smokes out. "What the fuck did you do to your hair?"

I glance at the now blue tips of my hair, "You don't like it?"

She smirks up, as if she knew me that well. "How long have you been runing away from them?"

I sigh exhausted, "At least two weeks."

Jessie nods and places the brand new cigarette against the balcony's frame. "What are you doing?" I ask since the cigarette was new.

"I ain't going to no rehab." She smiled up, "You are system's target, if they found you, I'm not getting into trouble." She opens the window to let the air clear and sprays Lysol.

"Lol, you think that's gonna help you."
I sit in her beat up dinning table and lean my face against the rough wood. There were so much reasons why someone would run out of the foster system. They often promised you a happy family and shit, I had to change from family at least hundred times since I was a baby. The first two years of my life are completely blurry and I have no idea what happen to me, I'm surprise I'm even alive.

The people in their just put you in a random house and expect them to be nice people. At least two out of my four families had fathers that beat their wife's and tried to beat me. And I say tried because If they dared to touch me, I would burn their hands.

The first foster father that hit me, had it back when I smashed his baseball bat against his leg. Of course, it went to my record, but that's just how fucked up the system is.

But the greatest one was mom number four, she tried to sell me for a doze of heroin to her neighbors. I was thirteen. I spent two years in that hell cage as she got high and sold herself for drugs. It took the system two years to found out how fucked new "mommy" was.

And now, they were ready to deliver me to another family. They were completely mental if they thought I would let them.

"How long are you gonna crash here?" She asked and I turned my attention to her, Jessie was my foster mother number two, I could say staying with her where the happiest three years of my life. But there was only one problem that all the foster mother's seem to have; she loved drugs.

"Forever?" I ask hopeful and Jessie laughs. She looks so much older and worn out than in those early years. Her teeth is yellowish, almost as her hair.

"They'll come look you here, Charlie." She comes closer to me and I let her play with my hair strands. I close my eyes completely numb by Jessie's touch, hopeful that they won't.

~

When I wake up, I find myself in a bed, and Jessie's silhouette trying to light up the previous cigarette desperately, her hands are trembling and I can listen to her cursing.

"Fuck." She cries as she sweeps her hand against her face. Jessie is thirty two and looks like fifty, the drugs had screwed her up so badly. Some part of me was glad that the system moved me out, I couldn't stand seeing Jessie destroy herself with drugs.

I tried to talk her out of it, but it was never enough, her addiction for drugs was stronger than the one affection for me. Jessie had a nice husband, Tony, whom left her as soon as her addition grew unbearable and that's when the system bugged in.

I could listen to her cries as she smashed the lighter against the floor. I sit in the bed and put my shoes on, without a word, I walk out of the apartment.

~

I walk around the dark allies of Topeka, one of the big reasons why our system sucks is because I live in Kansas and frankly, no one gives a fuck about Kansas. So people do as they please, by that I mean, the system people/government.

I start to get sleepy to the point I can't walk anymore. There's a bench close by and I settle down in it. At first everything is okay, it's just me and the crickets of the park. But as time goes on, street people get out.

I can listen to people passing me by talking about Molly and her friends, which probably is heroin and cocaine. I limit myself to listen to them and focus on my sleep.

But It all goes to hell as soon as I hear the police's sirens. I can't risk myself with it, my eyes open widely and I race for my life. People joined me and started to see where they could hide. I try to look for an escape but it's so damn dark and I have no idea where I am.

I find a corridor and try to jump the fence and hide in the other side, the metal is cold against my fingers, I can listen to footsteps behind me and I'm starting to sweat.

"Stop right there," they order me but I didn't listen to them. "I said stop." He hisses angrily, he grabs me from behind and pull me away from the fence. He lights up my face with a horrible flashlight that makes me whimper.

"You coming with us." I try to escape but his grasp is too strong, I'm not scared that they'll do me test to see if I was involved with any sort of illegal substance but the fact that I won't get out the station until the system comes for me.

~

"You should feel lucky," The police officer say and I shove him a deathly glare, he clearly doesn't know what he's talking about.

"Watch your tone, girly." He says accusingly as he's about to open the gate.

"I didn't say anything," I smirk. The policeman just sighs and opens the gate as his other mall cop joins him.

"How's it going, Joe?" He asks annoyingly happily. I roll my eyes as he directs himself to me.

"Are you ready?" He asks, "We going to a new home."