"Knock-knock," a cheerful voice rings out from the doorway. I look from my marking to see Clarissa standing at the door with her lunch in hand.
"Hey Clarissa, pull up a seat," I tell her as I move some of my papers to make space for her.
"I swear, from the day you came back three weeks ago I've barely seen you at school or after school. It's already the last day of November, I miss my friend," she pouts before breaking into a smile.
"Sorry about that. I've been preoccupied with getting Wren settled and feeling comfortable at home," I tell her as I go back to marking my class' assignments.
"Wait, hold on. What are you talking about?" she questions as she starts eating. "And aren't you eating your lunch?"
"I can't. I want to finish this first before eating. Since I missed a week of school, this is all the work that I still have to mark. As for your second question, well, I've adopted one of my students," I reveal.
"What? Are you for real? What happened?" she asks shocked.
"Well I don't want to say too much but some personal issues were going on and I didn't want him to be put in the foster system so I decided to adopt him," I explain.
"Wow, that's amazing. How's he adjusting?" she questions.
"Wren is doing so great and from what I can see he's okay with living with me," I answer, a smile on my face just thinking about the sweet little boy.
"That's so great to hear. I'm honestly praying that everything continues to transition well and that he gets better too," she says patting my arm. "If you ever need a hand with anything or you just need someone to talk with, don't hesitate to ask."
"Don't worry, I'll be sure to," I reply with a grin. Clarissa was my first friend here at the school when I started three years ago so I know I can reach out to her if I'm troubled. It's quiet between the two of us, her eating and me continuing my marking before we're interrupted with my class phone ringing. I place my pen on the papers and walk over to the phone.
"This is Charlotte," I say when I pick up the phone.
"Charlotte, could you come down to the office?" the secretary asks. In the back, I can hear a familiar voice crying and I have a sinking feeling of just who it is.
"I'll be there in a minute," I reply before hanging up.
"What happened?" Clarissa asks as I get my class keys.
"I don't know but they need me in the office," I reply as I open the door and lock the doorknob. "Can you just shut the door when you're leaving?" Clarissa nods her head before shooing me away. I walk as fast as I can down the hall and stairs, trying not to let my worry consume me. I open the office doors and I'm met with the sight of Tricia attempting to console Wren and a lady screaming. I close the door behind me and that puts a pause to all the chaos as the focus turns to me. Wren gets up from the bench he's sitting on, running into my arms as I reach for him.
"What is going on?" I ask as I pull Wren closer to me.
"This woman is claiming to be his mother," Tricia tells me pointing at the woman that was previously screaming.
"I came to sign out my child and take him home. Hand him over to me so we can leave," she demands, holding out her hand to me. Now that I'm looking at her, I can see the resemblance she has with Wren and even Jax. Same hair colour, eye features and nose. Even their mouths look the same. It's no secret who it is.
"He's not going back with you," I tell her as I shield Wren away from her.
"What? Who do you think you are? I'm his mother and you're only his teacher," she retorts.
"You're wrong, this child is my son and last time I checked I have full custody of him," I tell her as I press Wren closer to me. She freezes for a moment before pursing her lips in distaste.
"So you're the one that took him. Don't think you'll be keeping him. He will be coming back with me," she tells me.
"I don't know if you have a screw loose but under no circumstances will anyone let you take him with you. Now, I think it's best you leave before I call the police," I advise.
"Fine, don't think this is the last time you'll see me," she says as she moves towards the door before stopping beside me. She pauses for a moment, fingertips on the doorknob. "If you're wondering how I got bail posted, I think you should be familiar with the name Lorenzo," she says in a low voice. I feel my blood run cold when I hear the name. It's one thing after another with that man. She exits the office, slamming the door behind her. I can still feel Wren trembling in my arms and my hand runs through his hair.
"Next time could you not let her into the school? She may be his mother by blood but I currently have custody of Wren," I tell the secretary before turning to address Tricia. "I'm going to take this little guy home. Would you be able to get someone to cover for me for the afternoon?"
"You don't have to worry about it. If I'm not wrong, the supply teacher that was covering for one of the fifth-grade classrooms this morning is still here. I'll ask her to take over for the afternoon," Tricia says reassuringly.
"Thank you so much. I'll email you tonight if we'll be in school tomorrow or not," I tell her. "Wren, we're going home," I tell him as we exit the office. He slowly unravels his hold on me and he takes my hand as we walk to the classroom.
"Go put on your jacket and winter items," I tell him once I've unlocked the door. He slowly walks to the class closet as if he's in a daze. I quickly pack up my materials and leave the science package we were supposed to do today on my table with a small note detailing which sections I want my students to do.
"Charlotte, I'm ready," Wren says as he comes to stand beside me.
"Alright, let's go home," I tell him as I lead the both of us out of the class. I shrug on my jacket and hat and take Wren's hand in mine. I leave the class door unlocked for when they come back later after lunch. We walk quietly out of the school and even in the car Wren is silent on the drive home. I park the car, unlocking both our doors, grabbing our bags before leading us to the house.
"Wren, what do you want to do?" I ask him when we step inside. I hang our jackets and place our bags beside the closet. He shrugs his shoulders silently and I can't help but feel like all the progress we've been making has just been destroyed.
"Why don't we watch a movie together and have a cup of hot chocolate? I suggest. He shakes his head again, and I can see his eyes are watering. This situation really shook him. I lead him to the living room, pulling him into my lap. "You can cry, Wren. I'm here." As soon as I say that, the dam breaks again and the room is filled with heart-wrenching sobs. I hold him just a little tighter and his crying is making me want to cry.
After roughly fifteen minutes or so, Wren's crying dies down until all I hear is his soft breathing. I glance down to find him sleeping, eyes and face puffy from the crying. I slowly lean over to the coffee table, grabbing a kleenex to wipe his face.
I let out a quiet sigh and move Wren so his head rests on my lap and grab the blanket we used last time to cover him up. I might as well get some rest while he sleeps. At the moment, I honestly don't want to leave him. I close my eyes and the last thing that runs through my mind is that I'll need to talk with the social workers.
✘✘
I wake up to the noise of the doorbell ringing. I glance at the time on the wall and I see it's only a quarter past four. I'm pretty sure it's not Jax because he said that he would be coming home after five and I know my sister-in-law plus brother are busy with their new addition to the family. I slowly move from Wren and stretch as I stand. I quickly walk to the door, glancing at the spyhole, and it's just the person I was going to call later today.
"Mr. Coleman, just the person I wanted to speak to today," I say as I open the door for him and his companion.
"Ms. Dawson, it's nice to see you as well," he says as they step inside. "Let me introduce you to Wren's new social worker Tanya Collen. After the previous incident, I did look into finding a new social worker for Wren," he says introducing the woman to me. She looks to be in her thirties with light brown-coloured skin and vibrant blue eyes.
"It's nice to meet you Tanya, I hope we can be on the same page on wanting the best for Wren," I tell her as I hold my hand out to shake.
"Yes, that is the most imperative thing," she answers whole-heartedly as she shakes my hand. Shall we start this meeting?"
"Yes, but we'll have to do it in the kitchen, Wren is currently asleep in the living room," I tell them as I lead them inside.
"Has he been having trouble sleeping?" Paul asks me as we enter the kitchen.
"I can explain and it mainly has to do with why I was going to call you today," I tell him. "Did you want anything to drink?"
"Water will be fine. What did you wish to speak about?" he questions.
"I need to know why I wasn't of informed Wren's mother was released from jail," I say getting straight to the point. Paul and Tanya both look at me in surprise and from their expressions I'm getting a strange suspicion that they weren't informed either.
"What are you talking about? She doesn't have anyone that would pay bail for her. Her only other immediate family is her oldest son," he says in confusion.
"Well someone did pay for her," I tell them and I purposely omit to mention Lorenzo's name. I don't need the social workers digging for dirt on a mafia leader that is connected with Jax. "She visited the school during lunch today demanding that Wren go home with her and he was frantic. I knew it wouldn't be right to let him stay for the rest of the day so I brought him home."
"This is outrageous," Tanya exclaims. "If she was released, the officers should have informed us and we would have passed the message to you as well."
"That's what I don't understand either. This is very bizarre and unheard of," Paul muses.
"Ms. Dawson, we will be looking into this matter and we will also be filing a restraining order for you as well. She will not come near either of you," Paul tells me.
"Thank you so much," I say with a small smile.
"Before we go, is Wren still adjusting well to his new environment?" Tanya questions.
"Yes, he is. He has spent some time with my nephews and he'll be spending more time than usual since their mother just gave birth," I explain with a proud smile.
"Congratulations to you and your family. We are also pleased to hear that everything is still going smoothly," she tells me.
"I'm also pleased everything is going great," Paul echoes as they write down a couple of more notes before closing their folders.
"We shall be heading out now," he tells me and I walk them back to the front door of the house.
"One question before you two go, has there been an official court date set for his parent's trial?" I ask as I open the door.
"As of now not yet. We will also look into that as well and inform you of the date. There is a high chance that it might take place in the new year most likely in January" he explains.
"I look forward to hearing any information about it," I tell them.
"Alright, have a good evening Ms. Dawson and we will most likely see each other after the new year," Tanya tells me. I wave goodbye to them and I quietly shut the door. I turn around and I'm met with the sight of Wren looking a little troubled.
"Am I leaving?" he asks in a quiet voice. I feel my heartbreak when I hear that question. I quickly cross over to him, falling onto my knees and placing my arms around him.
"Wren, you are here to stay. This is your home, and I am never letting you go back to where you were before," I say vehemently. I feel small arms wrap around me hesitantly before the grip tightening. We stay hugging in the foyer for a couple of minutes but after a while, my knees need a break from kneeling.
"Do you want to help me with dinner?" I ask holding out my hand. He nods his head, placing his hand in mine and the two of us go to make our dinner. Cooking with a kid will be a new experience for me. The one thing I'm not looking forward to is when Jax hears about what happened today. If he was staying calm with this whole mafia shit, I wonder if that calmness will snap when he hears about his mother.
✘✘
A/N Happy Saturday everyone!! I had this chapter 3/4 done yesterday but I needed sleep to go to work early this morning which is why I'm updating now.
Today was a not so great day. I went to work and there was a power outage and so we were stuck for roughly 6 almost 7 hours without electricity. By the time it came back I was so tired and I just had a headache. The plus is that I'm still being paid so that's a good thing.
My only highlight today was finishing this chapter and then I'm going to rest my head for a bit [a.k.a pass out on my sofa 😂]
Anyways enjoy chapter 19 and I should have 20 up soon as well. See you all later!