Chapter 14
The next day...
Riker POV
I woke up when I heard banging. Banging on the front door, to be exact. I was scared out of my mind. They probably know I escaped, and they're probably going to take me back there or to jail or something! I'm going to be in so much trouble!
I started to cry, and just pulled the blankets over my head. I curled into a ball, wishing they'd just go away. I want to stay here!
Within minutes, I heard people in my house. And they came up the stairs. I heard my door being unlocked, and I started sobbing. I had my eyes shut tight, and every muscle in my body was tense.
The blankets were pulled off of me, and I saw police officers.
"Riker. How did you leave the orphanage?" One of them asked, crouching down to me.
"I-I j-jumped over t-the f-fence..." I whispered.
"Why?"
"B-because I m-miss h-home and m-my p-parents!" I cried.
"I want to talk to him alone for a few minutes," the guy said to the other officers.
All the other officers left, and my door was shut.
"I know you miss your parents, Riker. But you can't just leave the orphanage like that. You're not allowed."
"I d-don't like it t-there!"
"Why not?"
"B-because t-the other b-boys p-pick on m-me f-for c-crying."
The officer sighed.
"P-please d-don't make m-me go b-back!"
"Riker, unfortunately, there's nothing else I can do."
"No!"
"Ok, before you start crying again, tell me what you want."
"T-to stay h-here."
"Ok, well you can't. What else do you want?"
"T-to b-be adopted."
"You want to be adopted?"
"Y-yeah. I j-just w-want a m-mom and d-dad again."
"Alright... Well maybe I can arrange that."
"W-wait! B-but I w-want my f-friend to c-come with m-me."
"Who's your friend?"
"E-Ellington R-Ratliff."
"Alright. I'll see what I can do, ok?"
"Y-yeah..."
"But for now, I need to take you back to the orphanage."
"N-no! P-please don't!"
"Riker, I have to. You're only 14."
I started crying harder.
"Come on. I'll give you some time to get dressed and pack up your stuff, and then we'll go, ok?"
I nodded, but I didn't want to.
Later...
Riker POV
I'd packed my bags again, and I was dressed. I was currently in the front seat of a cop car, being taken back to the orphanage. The officer promised me he'd try to get me and Ellington adopted.
When we got there, he brought me back inside, and left me there. I got yelled at by a few different people about how running away is wrong, and I could've gotten hurt, and blah blah blah.
I was brought back to my bedroom by Jackie, and I got myself settled again. Once I'd had a chance to calm down a little, I left my room, and knocked on Ell's door. He opened it, and immediately pulled me into a tight hug.
"Oh my god, I thought you were gone forever!" Ell said.
I hugged him back, starting to cry.
"Aw, Riker, it's ok. Are you in trouble?"
"N-no..."
"That's good!"
"C-can we sit d-down?"
"Yeah."
Ell closed the door and sat down next to me on his bed.
"So what happened?" Ell asked.
I wiped my eyes, and calmed down.
"I went home."
"And?"
"And police found me, and brought me back."
"That's it?"
"Well unless you want the details of getting my pants stuck on a fence, then yeah, that's it."
"Wait! Tell me!"
"No! It was awful! I'm never jumping fences again! It seriously hurt!"
"Ok, ok..."
"And one more thing..."
"What?"
"The police officer asked what I wanted. I told him I wanted to be adopted, and I wanted you to be adopted with me. He said he'd see what he could do. So..."
"So maybe I'll get a mom and a dad!?"
"Yeah..."
"That would be so cool! Thank you so much, Riker!"
I sniffled a little, still working on calming down.
"You're welcome."
He hugged me again, and I smiled slightly. I liked having a friend. I'd lost pretty much everything else. But now I have a friend. And maybe we'll become brothers!
Later...
Riker POV
I took another pill before I went to sleep. I couldn't help it. I'd figured out that I felt weird that one day because I hadn't taken a pill the night before. So now I take them no matter what. And plus, they keep me asleep, and they keep the nightmares away.
Suddenly, my door opened.
"Riker, I need you to come with me," Jackie said.
I got up, and left my room. Ellington was with her. She led us downstairs into the meeting room. I was confused because we're only in this room if there are people here to adopt kids. And it's almost 9:00 at night!
"Riker, Ellington, we talked to the police, and they suggested for the time being, we put you in a foster home. It's the same idea as an orphanage, except a lot smaller. You get to live with an actual family until you get adopted by permanent parents. We found some people to take you in, and you're going to meet them right now. You guys will leave tomorrow," Jackie said.
My heart was racing with excitement. I'd never felt this way since my parents died. Ellington seemed even more excited than me.
Jackie left, and came back a minute later with a man and a woman.
"Riker, Ellington, this is Mr. and Mrs.Russo."
We just kind of smiled shyly at them.
"Who's Riker, and who's Ellington?" Mrs.Russo asked.
"I-I'm Riker," I said, nervously.
"And I'm Ellington."
We talked a little bit more, and then the Russos left. Jackie told us to go back to bed, so we did.
So... Tomorrow we get adopted, I guess...
The next day...
Riker POV
Ellington and I were settled into our foster home. We were sharing a room together. But the best part was that it was an actual bedroom. It wasn't some tiny closet area like at the orphanage.
But we were told not to unpack yet. Apparently there was someone who might potentially adopt us. We might actually get a real home, and get a real family!
Later...
Riker POV
Ell and I learned that we'd be getting adopted within the next week. There was apparently some guy that would be adopting us both! I was super excited, and so was Ell. That was practically all we could talk about.
Little did we know, it wouldn't be what we were expecting...
A/N : So, this concludes Orphaned. The next book will be called Adopted for obvious reasons... I won't say much about the sequel, but the first chapter will probably be up tonight. Thanks for reading, commenting and voting. ~Kylie