Carrie awoke with a funny feeling.
At first she wondered why she felt like that, but then she remembered. Michelle was gone. She'd been gone for a day now.
Carrie wondered how Michelle felt. Was she scared of her new family? Had she said too many strange things? Was she already happy? Was she scared in her new house?
Michelle was so lucky. Carrie thought she would never have the luck of getting new parents. Most people wanted babies, anyway. They thought the older ones were already unteachable and unlovable. 'They are so wrong', Carrie thought shaking her head.
She hoped that Michelle was all right. The family that was adopting her had seemed nice, but you never knew. Her parents had also seemed nice in public, and the neighbors had all been surprised to find out that they'd been hitting their children and making them work all the time. They'd thought the scars and bruises were normal, and that they'd gotten them the way that all kids get them: playing. And they'd never given it another thought until the police turned up in front of the house.
Carrie tried to stop thinking about that as she put on her clothes, now very worn and old. She'd had that dress for four years. And it was her oldest one. And her mother had made her work to, as she put it, pay it back.
It was much too small for her by now. After all, it had been only slightly loose when she'd gotten it at age eight, and given the way she'd grown since then, it was quite amazing that she could still get into it.
She'd grown in other ways, too. She'd been forced to mature a lot faster than most other children her age, due to the problems at home. And protecting Michelle.
They'd never been close, but Carrie, as the oldest of the two, had always felt the need to protect Michelle. Carrie thought she'd been an almost total failure in that sense. Michelle had still gotten a severe concussion and many more bruises and hits than she deserved. But at least she was still alive.
Carrie combed her short hair and walked downstairs. Feeling down, she nibbled at the cheese sandwich she was handed and paid no attention to the other girls' conversation. She didn't want to talk. In fact, she didn't even want to be there. All she wanted now is to be adopted and loved, like had happened to her sister just the day before.
* Flashback *
"I love you!" Carrie cried.
"I'll never forget you!" Michelle responded.
"We'll see each other again!" Carrie promised.
"I'll ask them if I can come back and see you every time I'm feeling lonely."
"They can't separate us totally, Michelle. We'll see each other again." she repeated.
Then they hugged each other, a big bear hug, and for the longest time neither of them let go of each other.
"Let's go." the Littrells said, after letting the girls hug and talk for more than half an hour.
"You'll write, won't you?" Carrie asked.
"Of course." Michelle said.
"Well, bye. Write soon." Carrie said.
They hugged one last time, said their last goodbyes, then Michelle took Mr. Littrell's hand as they walked to the car.
* End of flashback *
Carrie didn't have Michelle's address, but she decided to see Matron Joanne about it. Maybe she'd be nice instead of bitter and cold, for once, and actually let her have her sister's new address. Who knows, maybe she'd even let her call!
Carrie knew Michelle would probably forget to write, and she was itching to write to her sister. Since Michelle had been gone for only one day, she didn't have any news to tell her, but she'd figure out something. She had to. She wasn't going to let Michelle forget her.
Carrie and happily skipped her way to Matron Joanne's office. She knew the way perfectly: she'd been there more than once. Matron Joanne liked to talk to Carrie, but why Carrie wasn't sure. Hopefully, though, she could use this familiarity to somehow contact her sister.
She was so hopeful that at least one thing would be going well in her life. Or maybe not.
Author's Chapter Notes:
I hope you're liking it so far!
