When Mike and Aria pull up into the drive way, her social services car is already there waiting for them.
"When you get out of this car, you're going to say sorry to Rebecca and then go into the office." Mike tells her. Aria nods, opening up the van door and slamming it shut behind her.
"Sorry," She tells her social worker before turning to enter the house.
"Aria wait," Rebecca calls the girl back.
"Yes?" She asks, crossing her arms at her chest and tilting her head to the side.
"I don't want to be here, and I know you don't want to be here. So i'm letting you off, just this once. But if anything like this happens again that will be it."
"Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!" Aria squeals hugging Rebecca by surprise before running into the house to tell Frank the good news.
"Thank you," Mike says sincerely, shaking the women's hand before getting into the van again to finish talking to Liam's foster parents.
****
Later that night, laying soundly in her bed, Aria suddenly hears the patter of multiple footsteps outside of her room.
"Psst!" A voice says right next to her head causing the young girl to sit up in shock, whacking her hand out to hit the person around the face.
"Shoot. Sorry!" She whispers, seeing Frank standing there rubbing his cheek. "What's going on?" Aria asks with a yawn.
"The girl from the Telly this morning is downstairs," he tells her.
"That's nice," Aria yawns getting ready to fall back asleep again before his words process in her head. "Wait? The girls from the telly?"
"Yes."
"Is downstairs?"
"Yes"
"Like right now?"
"Yeah."
"What's she doing here?"
"I don't know. Come on!"
The two join the crowd of children in the kitchen who are now sat around the table. Frank and Aria also sit down, interested in why the 'famous' writer is sitting at their table.
"Ohhh, you're the writer," Gina says. "Sorry, why didn't you say?" Before turning back to the kids, "Eh, you lot, you're meant to be in bed."
"We were, but then we heard she was here," Tee says with a smile on her face.
"I told them," Carmen says happily. "If i buy a book. Will you sign it for me?" She says innocently, trying to win the adult over.
"Hey," Aria whispers to Frank while the others are talking. "I swear I recognise her."
"Yeah. She was on the telly," Frank reply's in a whisper, wanting to listen to everyone else.
"No I swear-" Aria begins before getting interrupted.
"Wish I could have one, but I can't afford it," Carmen says trying to play the sympathetic card.
"Stop begging Carmen!" Johnny says knowing exactly what she was doing.
"I wasn't!"
Harry suddenly climes under the table before popping up at the other end nearer Tracy.
"It's okay," Carmen says after Tracy says she can't give them away. "I'll borrow Gina's."
"Right," Gina says sounding like she really wants to be there. "Come on you lot! Back to bed. Come on!"
But as soon as those words leave her mouth, the questions start back up again.
"Right, first one back to bed gets to ask me about being on the telly!" Tracy says suddenly causing everyone to rush up the stairs much to her shock. "Wait for me."
"Come on Harry," Aria says walking round to grab his hand. "I'll tuck you in."
"No, I want Tracy," the young boy says running into the crowd of people.
"Traitor," Aria mumbles.
Gina walks up beside her, putting a hand on her shoulder and smiling down at the girl. "Are you gonna, run as well for Tracy?"
Aria shakes her head, the two girls walking slowly back to the stairs. "Have you heard from Mike about Liam?" She asks instead, worried for her friend.
"No sorry," Gina says shaking her head.
"Whats going on?" A sleepy Sapphire says coming down the corridor. "You were on the telly," she suddenly realised pointing a finger at Tracy as the two other girls walk over to them. "And you took my headphones," She accuses looking over at Aria.
"And I got arrested," Aria says back smirking slightly.
"And we're having a sleepover," The older girls says grabbing her hand and dragging her away. Not leaving her to complain.
"That's our Sapphire," Gina says like it clears everything up — which is does — before realising what the two girls just said. "Wait! Girls! You know what— never mind."
****
It wasn't long after Aria fell asleep did Sapphire keep back out of bed, collecting her art project before heading downstairs into the kitchen. The only place she could spread her things out downstairs is when the house how is asleep. ...
Or so she thought.
"Sapphire right?" Tracy asks walking into the kitchen disrupting the peace. "What you doing?"
"Minding my own business," The teen responds, standing up to get more things to stick down.
"Looks good," Tracy says trying to make conversation with the girl. "Are you hoping to go to art college? You must be nearly 16 right?"
"Year and a bit to go," Sapphire responds. "Then i'm out of here."
"I was desperate to leave to."
"Well it worked out alright for you. You're like, some kind of 'celebrity'. What you doing back here? Once i'm gone i'm never coming back." Sapphire then pauses. "Maybe to see how Aria is getting on but other then that, i'm gone.."
"Yep. I said that — apart from the friend bit, Tracy tells her remembering her years at the Dumping ground. "But you know, at times like this, it's actually quite nice to be here."
There's a pause.
"Are you a total brain donor or what?"
"You care about Aria right?" Tracy suddenly asks out of the blue.
Sapphire pauses what she's doing, "Yeah why."
"Why was she at the station? It seemed like they already knew her."
Sapphire begins to glare at the older girl. "We all have our own problems. You should know that. What she does is her own responsibility, don't get involved."
****
Aria is woken up to yelling, quite common in the dumping ground, so she rolls back around to try and sleep. But the unfamiliar warmth of her own room causes her to sit up, before remembering she spent the night in Sapphires room.
"What's up with you lot?" Aria asks, doing up the top button of her jeans before exiting her own room this time.
"Tracy's gone!" Carmen says with her arms up annoyed.
"I'm sure she can't get far." Aria replies absentmindedly, not really caring. It isn't like she formed a bond with the women.
She walks into the kitchen, not expecting to see the 'missing' women there at the table in between Carmen and Frank.
"Tracy didn't get far then," Aria comments, ruffling Harry's hair on her walk round the kitchen. She grabs her bowl out the cupboard, one she painted herself at her friend, Chris' birthday party back when they were seven. No one else is allowed to use her bowl and everyone knows that.
Sapphire hands her the apple juice out of the fridge as Aria grabs her favourite cereal out of the cupboard.
"She was just in the garden," Sapphire tells her laughing.
"Woah! So lost!" Aria laughs back, filling her glass up with apple juice and taking a seat at the crowded table.
Smiling to herself, she's glad she was able to get off with a warning.