Chapter 4
I quietly followed the man into a separate office space. Which, taking a step back, is insane that people have live in office spaces or, more accurately, the Millers are far out of the usual tax brackets my foster families are from. We walked in relative silence, and the office space was nice, really nice. Had a very homely vibe to it if I had to describe it. Well furnished and warm, like everything the Millers are.
"Hey buddy, I hope I didn't scare you. I just wanted to pull you aside and ask if everything was okay," Mr. Miller said in his deep rumble-like voice as he sat opposite me in his office chair, and me in an extra chair he pulled out from the side of the room.
"No, sir. Everything has been fine since I got here." I keep myself respectful, it's the first rule I set up for myself after the first foster home. I was still rubbed raw from her passing, and well, the bruises blooming after my disrespect didn't help either.
His smile tensed. God, he was smiling the whole time, so unnerving. "Well, you don't have to call me sir. Mr. Miller works, and Judy wouldn't like you to call her ma'am or miss, so if you're comfortable with it, then you can also call her Mrs. Miller." He spoke softly for such a huge guy, kind of intimidating, but he was clearly trying to make himself seem harmless. I nodded tightly.
His expression was contemplative as he slowly spoke once more in the silence. "We're still ironing out the paperwork to process your stay here, and when that's done, you'll officially be our foster child or ward. Luckily, it's still the middle of summer, so we can get your schooling ready."
I feel my arms tense behind me as he mentions my schooling, and I already know where this is gonna go.
He speaks even more lightly this time, trying to gauge my reaction with his inquisitive eyes. "I just wanted to make sure it was true, but Miss Clark mentioned that you were homeschooled until you were 12. Then, when you were registered into the foster care system, you've been moving all around the state, so you haven't been properly going to school within the last two years...?" He trailed off the last sentence as if it were a question, but we both knew it was true.
"Yes, Mr. Miller, that is right."
He gave me one final tight smile. "That's fine, we can ask the local high school to let you take placement tests and see what classes you should be taking to be on track. Don't worry, we'll get it all sorted before your first year." When it's clear he has nothing else to say, he tells me I should get some rest and pats my shoulder as we leave his office.
My brain is going a mile a minute thinking of the possibilities of actually attending a real school, and I don't know whether I'm happy or scared of the situation. I slowly walk back up to the room until I hear a pair of voices coming from the room, and I take the familiar space of looking through the crack in the door.
This time, it was both Chris and Anthony holding scripts as they seemed to be talking through lines together.
I walked to the bathroom and quietly locked the door behind me. I flick open the sink tap casually and kneel in front of the toilet as I throw up all the chicken piccata I just ate. Let me tell you, it tastes much better going down than going back up. I grip the pristine porcelain while I empty my stomach to the image of heavy scripts and ruby red lips.