Forever Mine

Chapter 2: Charolette Cunningham

CHARLEY'S POV
I'm Charolette Cunningham. Please call me either Char or Charley. I am four and I live at some place named after a type of egg. People come here and are supposed to pick one of us to keep. I don't get it though, why don't we get to pick who we live with?
I came here because my mommy disappeared and my daddy was a bad man. Mommy would leave me home with him every day so that she could go get these green pieces of paper. Daddy didn't like me.
My daddy used to get mad at me and throw stuff a lot. I think it had something to do with this stuff in the fridge labeled alcohol. Every day, he would drag me out of my hiding place and hurt me. He called it 'big girl time'.
Now I don't hear. I can hear, but I'm not allowed to. My daddy's last words to me before the men in the blue suits took him away were,"Don't listen! Don't talk! I will get you if you do Charollete Cunningham!"
Now I am laying under my cot trying to hide from the day daddy will come back.

DEMI'S POV
I practically fall out of my car in excitement. I have finally arrived at Sunny Side Up Orphanage for Girls!
I'm greeted at the door by an old woman with a crinkly smile and gentle blue eyes.
"Miss Lovato?"
"Yes! That's me!" I walk inside. I had told the lady that I wanted a girl between the age two and ten. There were about fifteen girls who fit this description.
I still couldn't believe that parents abandoned their two month year olds at this friendly, but strangely bug spray scented, place! Then again, I don't know what time they're going through, Stay Strong!
Suddenly, a stampede of the cutest little girls come down the rainbow painted stairs.
"Girls, this is Miss Lovato." The lady looked around," Oh. I'm sorry I will be right back."
I count fourteen little girls. Weren't there supposed to be fifteen? I shrug and continue to smile at the girls. There are red heads, blondes, brunettes, and some with multiple shades on their hair.They're just so f**king cute!
They form a line and start introducing theirselves from oldest to youngest.
"Hi, I'm Hayley and I love to paint and read."
"Im Savvannah and I like to annoy people." I stifle a giggle at this snooty looking girl.
"HEY! I'M ARIEL AND-"
Ariel was interrupted by a little girl with long brown hair crying as the old lady carried her down the stairs.
"HEY! SHUT UP NUTCASE!" Shouted Ariel.
Miss Old Woman set down the little girl who was wearing ragged boot cut jeans and a pink polo. Then the old woman slapped her face, trying to be discreet, and whispered something in the girl's ear.
She sat down in the corner of the room and continued silently crying while Ariel criticized her.
"Baby! Why don't you go cry to your mama! Wait... You don't have one!" Cries Savvanah.
"ONCE THERE WAS A GIRL WITH BRUISES. THERE WERE SO MANY! THEY ATE HER ALIVE ONE DAY, NO ONE MISSED HER!" Shouts Ariel.
I pout and decide I need to change this. Didn't God supposedly put me here to end self-harming?
I walked towards the little girl, glaring at Ariel on the way, and squatted down to see her face. I looked into her sea green eyes and saw how much she hurt.
"Hey there, I'm Demi!"
No response.
The little girl with long curly hair and Mediterranean blue eyes just sits on the stool, a red mark still left on her little face. I reach to wipe away a tear, but the girl flinches and runs to another corner.
"Erm..... Can you come join me in my office once you've decided Miss Lovato?" Asks the old lady, startling me.
I nod, give the girl one last look, and go to finish talking to the others.
After two hours of all the girls, except the poor one in the corner, talking, I stood up and walked over to the corner.
"What's your name?" I ask her, attempting to create a little less tension between the two of us.
She just looked down at her shoes as I sighed and went to meet Miss Old Woman.
"Decided?" She asks while sorting papers.
"I'm not sure. Can you tell me about that little girl in the corner?"
"Oh," she says uncomfortably,"That's Charolette Cunningham. She doesn't speak or hear."
"You mean she's deaf?"
"No, she's just incredibly wounded and has seemed to gone mute and we thought she was deaf, but she has show signs that she can hear."
"What happened to her?"
"Well... Erm..... Her mother just left her alone with her father every day. Her father physically and sexually abused her. One day, her father ran off carrying her screaming mother and that's all we know because the poor dear won't even listen or speak at court."
I nod slowly. The poor girl. Sure, my father was terrible, but I can't imagine anyone hurting the innocent girl. No one should go through what I have felt.
"I have made my decision."
"Great! Let's go and announce who you have chosen to the girls!"
I walk out slowly and gather all of the girls' attention.
"It's been so nice meeting you all today! Please remember that you are special and you deserve to live, no matter what anyone tells you. Stay Strong , girls." They all stare at me with blank faces.
"SHE CHOSE ME!"squealed the brat of a girl, Ariel.
I shift uncomfortably as Ariel runs around, squealing in people's faces.
"Umm.... Actually, I choose Charolette."
Ariel stood there, frozen, for a mere five seconds. Then, she had a melt down. She cried, kicking and banging her head around the room. Then she started screaming rude things at Charolette.
"YOU FREAKY NUTCASE! SHE ONLY CHOSE YOU BECAUSE SHE'S GOING TO DO EXPERIMENTS AND THEN GIVE YOU AWAY TO YOUR DADDY!"
Charolette began to cry even more and the other girls laughed at her.
That girl had some nerve and I was about to go and tell her off when I remembered that she was only like five or six. So, I trudged unwillingly towards the abusive old woman.
I took the paper work from the shocked old woman and read over it.
Charolette Cunningham
Birth: August 27, 2007
Description:
Prefers to be called Charley or Char. Had sensitive and abusive past. Brown hair, Green eyes. Appears to be mute and has a listening disorder.

I look at Charolette who was balled up in the corner and looking at me with a frightened face.
"No need to be scared. Now let's go pack." I try to pick her up, but she backs away.
I sigh.
This is going to be more difficult than I thought.