ALL MIXED UP | I

01 make her mine 01

As she stepped out of the car, the first thing that hit her ears was the sound of laughter and happy screams. A group of young children played tag on the grass while the older ones sat around, talking and making the longest grass blade chains they could. It amazed her how children could be so happy when they'd lost everything.

The door chimed as she stepped into the building and she was greeted by a cheery employee no older than twenty.

"Hi, I'm Asher" she said, all smiles. "You must be Mrs. Shirogane." The Japanese woman nodded cordially. "You probably saw the kids playing outside. They'll be back inside in just a couple minutes. Why don't you come back around and take a look at the few left in here?"

Asher led her back into the rooms where a few boys and girls sat, some reading picture books, some chatting, some drawing. She pointed out each child by name, listing their likes and qualities.

"Hey, Miss Asher!" a young boy grinned, throwing his arms around the young woman. Asher smiled.

"Mrs. Shirogane, this is Brayden," she introduced. "He's a sweetheart. He loves music, don't cha, Brayden?"

"Yeah! I have a ukelele!" Brayden exclaimed proudly. The older woman smiled.

"Do you practice lots?" she asked gently.

"Whenever I can! I'm gonna be a musician!"

"Keep practicing, and one day, you will be great."

"Thank you, Mrs. Shirogane." Asher ruffled Brayden's hair.

"Oh," she said, as if suddenly remembering something. "The rest of the kids should be coming in. I'd better go get Sage. Would you like to come with me?"

Not a minute later, they were outside in front of a large tree. An intricate webbing of ropes hung from the limbs, criss-crossing in wild patterns.

"Sage! Time to come down!" A head of brown hair peered through the branches. Within seconds, a large, thick book was lowered to the ground. A small girl followed, dark curls splayed wildly around her round face. She couldn't have been older than three or four.

"This is Sage," Asher said, with considerably less enthusiasm. "She's, um, a special case."

"How so?" the Japanese woman asked. Asher bit her lip.

"My parents didn't want me," Sage spoke. The young woman looked uncomfortable.

"Sweetheart, why don't you head inside?" she suggested, giving Sage a small nudge. The girl stared at Asher for a moment, then walked off, clutching her book to her chest. Asher sighed.

"I'm very sorry, she's... a rather odd girl."

"Why do you say that?"

"Well, she keeps to herself. She only talks when she absolutely has to. I mean, what three year old goes days without talking? And by God, she's smart. But she's so odd. She sits in her bed or in this tree for hours, reading the dictionary. Most three year olds barely know their letters, and she reads the encyclopedia for fun."

"And what did she say about her parents not wanting her? Is it true?" Asher sighed.

"Yes, unfortunately. Her parents were of different races. Unfortunately, that was not a very common or accepted choice in the area she was born. Her parents decided that moving away wasn't worth the trouble and brought her here. She's been odd from the start." The Japanese woman considered this.

"I think I'd like to make her mine."

Thank you so very much for reading! This is my first work, so I'd really appreciate some feedback. Feel free to comment, vote, message me, whatever!

I'm not the goofball! I'm like the cool ninja sharpshooter.