A little blond figure poked her head around the corner. She was so used to the noise, that she almost couldn’t stand the silence. She waited for what seemed like an eternity, but when she heard no one coming, she decided to make her move. Stepping back to take a breath, with her heart pounding in her chest, she quickly got up the nerve and started off.
Little Suzy was only five, but this was the moment that she had been waiting for! The kitchen was open, no one was around, and she had her chance to make a run for it. Although this house was different from the other six, it still didn’t feel like home. The people at this one actually seemed to care, but she knew that wouldn’t last - none of the other foster homes had before. So why would this one be any different?
With her garbage bag in hand, she sprinted into the kitchen, fearing that if she took too long, she would never make it. She had all of her possessions tucked neatly inside her bag, and now it was time to gather her last items: the cupcakes that were sitting on the counter.
The blue frosting looked so appealing, but she didn’t have time to spare. The fear of getting caught put a lump in her throat, and she quickly licked each one, claiming it as her own. She had never before had a cupcake. As she tasted that blue frosting, she realized that nothing had ever been so sweet and so delicious. She quickly decided to put them all into her bag, but couldn’t get the frosting off of her fingers and face. She had made a mess and it was all over now -
“What are you doing?” Cried a voice from behind.
Suzy froze, not knowing what to do! If she turned around now, Mom would know that she had taken the cupcakes. She had to think of a story to distract her. “I’m not doing nothing,” she said, trying to sound innocent and cheerful.
“Don’t you lie to me, little girl. I can smell that frosting on you from a mile away! Who said you could get a cupcake?” Mom quickly grabbed her arm and pulled her away from the counter. There was frosting on her face, fingers, down her shirt, and all over her garbage bag. It didn’t really matter anyway, because it just blended in with the other stains that were already on her shirt. She had no answers, nothing else to stall Mom, so she tried to start crying.
“I’m not gonna put up with this nonsense!” Mom spanked her swiftly, and decidedly hard, on the thigh and pointed to the hallway. “Get in that bathtub so I can wash that crap off. When your Father gets home, you’re not gonna hear the end of this!”
Now the tears were really flowing. There was no sense in holding it back. She ran into the bathroom, but, rather than getting into the tub, she found her favorite hiding spot under the sink. If she could get in fast enough, she thought that maybe she could hide from Mom. But it was useless. Her trash bag of belongings was waiting beside the cabinet door and there was now frosting all over the door handle and the sink. Despite her best efforts to hide, she had left clues for Mom all over the bathroom.
“Suzy, if you don’t get out from underneath that sink, I’m gonna spank you again! Get out NOW!”
“NO!” Suzy cried, from within the cabinet. “You’re not gonna do it again. It hurts too much and you’re just a mean ol’ lady like all the rest!”
Mom opened the cabinet door and grabbed her by the arm. Without much effort, she wrenched her body free of the cabinet and put her into the shower. Not even bothering to remove her clothes, Mom turned on the shower and began to spray Suzy. The water was cold and the small, five-year-old girl began to shiver uncontrollably. Standing there, drenched with water, she kept telling herself that, if she had been faster, she could’ve escaped out the back door without Mom finding her.
Before she knew it Mom was dumping the rest of her belongings into the shower to be washed as well. Her toothbrush, extra shirt, and stuffed rabbit were floating in the pooling water at the bottom of the shower. Seeking some comfort, she bent down and picked up Mr. Rabbit and hugged him to keep him warm.
She began to silently speak to him, to comfort him and calm his fears. She longed for him to do the same for her, but he just felt cold there beside her.
“Why do you always have to make such a mess. Look, you got frosting all over your stuff and my house. And, you ruined all of my cupcakes! Those were for my mom’s seventieth birthday party, and now we have nothing. Nothing!”
Suzy knew not to respond to Mom. When she got like this, the smallest of words could illicit a slap in the face. So she stood there, wondering how long it would actually be until she could find a real home to stay in. Thus far, she had been through six other homes, and now, when she finally thought she had found a decent one, she gets spanked for just trying to feed herself.
Hope was lost. No one would ever take her.
Mom turned off the shower and began drying her off. She wrung out the rabbit and put him on the toilet to dry and started guiding Suzy to the bedroom.
“No! I need Mr. Rabbit. Please don’t put me back in there without him.”
“Mr. Rabbit,” Mother replied, “needs to dry off and so do you, little girl.”
“But I need him. I can’t sleep without him,” Suzy whined.
“Well, I don’t think you’ll be doin’ much sleeping, knowing what you’re gonna get from your Dad. Better yet, I think I might actually get some peace and quiet when he gets home. I’ll leave you in there for awhile.”
“No!” Suzy yelled. “You can’t let him back in my room! You said it was my place. You said I could have it all to myself.”
“Well dear,” Mom said with a smirk on her face, “that was before you ruined my life.” She shoved Suzy into the dark room and quickly closed the door. As Mom walked away, she could hear Suzy pounding repeatedly on the door.
Inside, Suzy knew that all she could do was wait. Since the room was already dark, she crawled under the bed to try and hide from the terror that was to come.
Chapter two please!
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