1
A Sad Goodbye
Twelve year old Britta stared out the window of the two story house. A fat tear glided down her smooth cheek and dripped off her chin. She watched as the pretty blonde girl walked away from the orphanage forever, unable to do a thing to stop her.
Elsie.
She had been like a big sister to Britta. But now she had a new home. A new family. Maybe even a new little sister. She would probably forget all about her and the other orphan girls at The Stevens’ Home for Orphaned Girls. She would probably never return. And why not? Would she, Britta Walker, ever return once she had the chance to leave? To be somebody? To be loved by a family?
Of course not. The idea itself was absurd.
The bright April sunlight seemed to dance in Elsie’s golden waves of hair and Britta could imagine her soft green eyes dancing and laughing as they always did. Elsie was always so happy. Britta glared at the sky. It should be raining right now. It should be storming. Lightning, thunder, the whole nine yards. But the sun was shining. Shining! On a day like this? Absurd.
Britta angrily turned from the window almost running into Sarah Cole, a redheaded orphan and Britta’s best friend in the world besides Elsie. The two girls looked at each other before embracing tightly, each willing the other not to cry.
It was always an emotional day when one of the girls found a foster home. With only 18 girls in the home, it was a lot like a large family. When one of them left, she left a hole in the hearts of the other girls, and even Mrs. Stevens and Miss Brooke, the two sisters who ran the home for girls.
The two friends clung to each other for a few moments, refusing to let their tears fall. Out of all the girls in the home, they had been the closest to Elsie. Not that she had liked them better – for she loved each and every girl as much as the next – but because of the circumstances that surrounded the two girls’ arrival at the home.
Finally, taking a deep breath, Sarah pulled away. “Lunch is ready. Mrs. Stevens wanted me to fetch you.”
Britta nodded. “I’ll be right down.” She said, throwing her friend a watery smile. Sarah returned the smile and turned to leave.
Britta gazed around the giant sleeping room that took up much of the second story of the house. There were 18 beds. Each one was so different from the others, reflecting the diverse personalities of the girls. Ashley’s bed had a pink spread on it. Jordan’s had two teddy bears. Jessie never bothered to make her bed. Britta’s own bed had a homemade quilt on it along with a singed and scarred stuffed dog – the only things that had survived the fire. Elsie’s…
Her gaze came to rest on the bed next to her own. It had been Elsie’s for almost 14 years. And now it would be empty – empty! – until another girl came and took her place.
“No one can ever take your place, Elsie,” she whispered fiercely. No one else had been in the home as long as she had. No one else loved them all so dearly. No one else was adored and idolized by everyone. No one.
“It’s not fair!” Britta scowled, wanting to scream. “Why did she have to go to a foster home? Why couldn’t those stupid old grown-ups take Ashley instead? No one likes Ashley! And we all loved Elsie!” Another tear slid down her face and she angrily brushed it away. “Elsie may as well be dead.” She said, anger giving way to sorrow.
Suddenly she could no longer hold back the tears. She flung herself onto her bed and sobbed into her pillow. Mrs. Stevens found her 10 minutes later… sound asleep. At the sight of Britta’s tear-stained face Alice Stevens had to hold her own tears back.
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Lissa stirred the oatmeal on the kitchen stove carefully. Dan hated sticky oatmeal. Of course he never complained, but then he never said much of anything, did he?
Her heart pounded when she heard the screen door squeak open. Dan’s tall frame entered the kitchen and Lissa watched as he routinely removed his cowboy hat and set it on a peg by the door. He didn’t look at her but promptly sat at the table. Lissa inwardly sighed, not knowing why she had expected more from him. It was always the same routine… day after day… month after month… year after year.
Dan had never been the silent type before the accident… No. She refused to think about it. Lissa pushed the thoughts away as she usually did. The rare occasions that she allowed herself to dwell on the past always brought unwanted pain and tears. When would the grief stop? It had been five years since the accident.
“I got a phone call from the Home for Girls.” She stated trying to sound casual as she sat Dan’s oatmeal before him. Dan didn’t speak as he fiddled with his fork. “They wanted to know if were going to come by this week.”
Silence. No evidence that he had even heard her.
“We’ve done it every year since –”
“I know!” Thundered Dan, standing up suddenly. “Don’t you think I know what goes on in my own house?” He stormed out the door, not even bothering to eat the carefully prepared oatmeal.
Lissa’s tears flowed freely now. Why did she even bother? Painful as his cold, indifferent silence was, she would much rather that than his harsh, biting words. Lissa picked up the phone, tears subsiding, and resolutely dialed the number to The Stevens’ Home for Orphaned Girls. | 
