The New Foster

[Shy-Diapers]

Charlotte nodded. “That sounds like a good idea.” She confirmed as they headed to the car. She let Rebecca help put the bags in the trunk of the car so she could feel important while Tom buckled Lani.

When they arrived, she went around and helped Rebecca out and led her inside with the other two. She sat in the booth on the side next to Rebecca, letting her pick if she sat on the inside or outside.

 

Lani let Tom get her in and out of the car without any issues. She did however want to bring her dragon in with her, keeping it to her chest. Though if Tom said no she obeyed and left it behind in her carseat.

Inside she sat on the inside of the booth next to Tom and looked over the menu, squirming in place as she tried to find something to eat in a new place. 

[Ishigreensa]

Tom didn't say anything about her bringing the dragon friend in.  It was as much a tool as a toy at the moment because he felt like it was keeping her calm.  Tom told her not to worry because he would be ordering for her since they normally ordered for Rebecca anyway.  They usually did for her because she was a poor reader and especially now, they wouldn't want Rebecca to feel pressured trying to read in front of the younger girl.

"Don't worry, sweetheart.  I'll tell you the choices and then you can just pick between three choices instead of trying to decide from a whole menu," he told Lani the way they usually did for Rebecca.  "McDonalds is one thing, but this kind of place would be overwhelming for a child because there are too many choices, and you don't really know what comes with what unless you've eaten here many times."

Rebecca didn't worry about the menu.  She just asked her mom.  "They have hamburger and potatoes and mixed vegies, still, right?  If I can have something like that, I'd be happy."

Tom did show the dessert menu though to both children.  "You can pick a dessert after you eat your meal," he told them, "but it doesn't hurt to look right now so you can see what there is."

[Shy-Diapers]

Lani nodded when Tom said not to worry about ordering. She was a little confused because she could read the menu perfectly and could figure it out for herself, but she didn’t complain.

“Can I just have vegetables?” She asked shyly to Tom, not wanting Rebecca to hear and make fun of her. She wasn’t fond of trying new foods or new places, and vegetables like green beans, broccoli, and carrots along with potatoes were her safe foods she knew she’d like. She squirmed in place while she waited for an answer, fidgeting with her dragon’s tale for comfort.

She wasn’t very interested in the dessert at the moment. She was trying to get through everything one step at a time. She stayed quiet and just drank her cup of water the waiter had brought them to start with. She wasn’t used to having unlimited access to drinks.

 

Charlotte nodded. “They certainly do. We can order that for you no problem, and I’m going to have a grilled chicken salad.” She said smiling as she closed her menu and collected Rebecca’s. 

[Ishigreensa]

"I'll get you some vegetables for sure," he told her.  "And maybe order some chicken for you just in case.  You liked the McDonalds chicken, right?  This chicken won't be that much different, and it comes with mashed potatoes and mixed vegetables, so how is that?  And if you don't like the chicken, I know of at least two people that will help you with that," he looked at Rebecca who loved chicken.

He ordered milk and the menus for the girls, let Charlotte order for herself, and then he had the steak potatoes and carrots.

"Oh, I haven't checked on Lani yet, and Rebecca, do you need to use the toilet, honey?"

"I just went before we left the store, didn't I, mom?"

"Okay.  I'll expect you to stay dry until we get home then."

"I will."

Tom looked down at Lani.  "Do you want to try to go potty, honey?"

[Shy-Diapers]

Lani frowned but nodded. She wasn’t really happy about what felt to her like Tom not listening. She said just vegetables. She was trying to be good though. And Tom knew best so if he said she’d get something else then that’s what she’d get.

“I don’t gotta go!” She protested a little louder than she intended. She pushed her empty cup away from her and let out a frustrated breath while she squeezed her dragon to her chest. She was upset and overwhelmed. The day had been so long for her already and she had been asked the same question so many times that day that she wasn’t able to keep it inside anymore. She swayed back and forth a bit in her seat, doing her best not to cry. 

[Ishigreensa]

Tom frowned and looked over at Charlotte.  They had had so much trouble getting Rebecca to consistently make it to the toilet at seven or eight years old, that this was just natural to him.  He didn't expect her to suddenly lash out.  He sighed.

"Alright, honey, alright.  Don't cry," he said pulling her closer to him so he could hug her.  It wasn't so much that he wasn't listening to her about her order, but just the way the food had to be ordered.  You could order sides of stuff, but if he didn't get her a main dish, other people would certainly stare at them, and besides, he wasn't sure if she was just scared or something.

"I just didn't want to leave it to chance that you were scared to speak up and then upset yourself if for one reason or another, you were unable to let us know you had to potty, sweetheart."

He tried to rock her against his side until the food came out.

 

Rebecca frowned and looked up at her mom.

"Is she okay?"

[Shy-Diapers]

Lani hid her face in Tom’s side. She was having a hard time. She wasn’t used to doing so much in one day and making so many decisions with so many new rules. She held her dragon close to her chest and hugged his arm, doing everything she could not to suck her thumb or cry. The last thing she wanted was to look like a baby.

 

Charlotte shook her head at Rebecca. “Don’t worry about it. She’ll be okay.” She said gently. She didn’t want her talking about Lani like she wasn’t there, and even if she was just genuinely worried, she didn’t think it would do any good to draw more attention to the girl.

She was happy when the food arrived so it could hopefully distract Rebecca and maybe calm Lani down. She helped the waiter serve the food to its respective person and started eating her salad. 

[Ishigreensa]

Tom actually asked.

"Excuse me, can we get an extra little saucer or something?" 

He decided by separating out the parts the girl really wanted and just leaving the chicken near her, would maybe calm her a bit since she would see that he did hear her.  He might have order the chicken, but this way, she knew she wouldn't have to eat it if she didn't want to.

Rebecca started to eat.  She knew that her parents had her well in hand.  her parents were really good at being there when you need them, and she was just a child.

She started to eat.

"I'm going to be in the oldest class this year!" she chirped at her mother.  "And then I go off to high school!"

She was starting to get happy.  

 

Tom pulled the baby girl next to him, and he tried to tempt her with spoonfuls of mixed vegetables and potatoes.  he made sure to have the potatoes plain for her so she wouldn't be surprised by a gravy she didn't like.  She had not said "..and gravy" when she asked for her meal.

"I'm just going to leave the chicken right there, so if you are still hungry after you eat your veggies and potato, then you can have the chicken if you want to try it."

He made sure to give her drinks of milk too, and only fed her as long as she didn't want to hold the spoon herself.

[Shy-Diapers]

Charlotte smiled and shook her head. “Middle school Becca. Middle school is next year.” She chuckled a little, not wanting to think about her daughter being old enough for middle school, let alone high school. “But let’s just focus on fifth grade for now. No need to grow up too fast!”

 

Lani pushed Tom’s hands away when he tried to feed her. “No!” She insisted unhappily. “I’m not a baby!” She protested in frustration. She moved herself away from him and pushed herself against the wall, finding comfort in the pressure. She ate her vegetables and potatoes and drank her milk without further fuss, but she also didn’t say anything to anybody even if they tried talking to her. She was overwhelmed and frustrated and struggling to regulate herself enough to calm down. Her dragon was helping but it could only do so much. 

[Ishigreensa]

Tom gave up and let her have a little peace.  He figured she was just tired and probably needed a long overdue nap.  They had been out all day, and the little one was the focus of their outing.

He spoke to Charlotte.

"Well, we got the clothes shopping done for school anyway, right?  So I'm supposed to go back in on Monday, but I don't know, if the little one is still a little bit paranoid, maybe I should take a little more time off.  I can decide that on Monday though.  I do have like 10 more days I haven't used."

He looked over at Rebecca.

"How is your dinner, sweetheart?"

"It's good."

"I can't believe you are going into fifth grade already!  You'll have to try to set a good example for Lani and show her how a fifth grader acts."

He smiled at her.

Rebecca smiled back.

[Shy-Diapers]

Lani stayed silent the rest of the time, finishing her food and then putting her head against the wall. What she wanted most of all was to go back to her own home with her own mommy, but she’d settle for Tom and Charlotte’s house.

 

Charlotte smiled and was glad the rest of lunch was going smoothly. Once everyone was finished and the bill was paid she headed to the car with everyone else.

In the car she spoke quietly to Tom. “I think you’re babying her a little too much for her liking. I know you’re probably trying to treat her like Rebecca at her age, but Becks has always been a late bloomer. Lani seems to be more mature, probably from her situation at home.” She said in a tone only he could hear. 

[Ishigreensa]

Tom looked over at Charlotte and nodded.  

"Yeah, I guess.  I mean, what you are saying isn't wrong.  I'm just kind of trying to get my head around this little one.  She acts so mature at times and other times, I'm not sure.  Honestly, I think someone has got her confused, or her living situation at home has her confused.  Did you know she didn't even want any toys at first, and was scared to pick out clothes kids her age normally don't think twice about?"

He shook his head.

"The only reason I got her to take the toys, is telling her that we'll ask her mom if she can keep them when she goes home, and if not, I'll just donate them, but at our house, she's allowed to have them."

He sighed.

"I know her mom probably doesn't have the money, but honestly, telling her that she's too old to be a child is really not healthy, is it?"

 

When they got home, Rebecca had fallen asleep, but luckily she had already used the toilet not long before, so she was still dry when it was time to get her out.

Tom reached in and quiet picked the little Lani up, and making sure they had her dragon buddy, he took her into the house and up to her room to put her down for a nap.

[Shy-Diapers]

Charlotte sighed and shrugged. “We don’t know much about her at all. I know you’re trying. Nobody said this would be easy.” She said before trailing off a bit. “We’ll just have to do what we can. Maybe she’ll start to open up to you more. I don’t want to bash the little girl’s mother if she couldn’t help it. Her file didn’t say how long she was sick or how sick she was.”

When they got home, Charlotte smiled. She hoisted Rebecca up and carried her to her room to take a nap. She was a bit old to nap every day, but Charlotte didn’t care so long as she was listening to her body. Once she was in bed with her shoes off, Charlotte went to carry in all the bags.

 

Lani leaned into Tom when he picked her up from the car. She wasn’t mad at him and felt bad for her outbursts earlier. She just wasn’t very good at controlling her emotions.

The closer they got to her room the faster her heart was going and the short and quicker her breaths were getting. “No!” She protested quickly, bolting up in Tom’s arms.

If Tom sat on her bed or pulled the covers back he’d find out she’d wet the night before. He was already treating her like a baby, what would he do if he found out she wet the bed? How much trouble would she be in? Will that be what gets her sent away again? The little girl’s mind was racing and she was shaking and looking pale, tears forming in her eyes when they entered her room. 

[Ishigreensa]

Tom stopped before getting to her bed because she said "no."

"Honey, I'm not trying to hurt you," he told her.  "What's wrong, sweetheart.  Look, I'm sorry I treated you a bit like a baby earlier.  I didn't realize it until you said you weren't one.  I only carried you up because you were sleeping, not because you are a baby.  Even Rebecca gets carried up at ten years old sometimes if she fell asleep in the car, honey."

He put her down on her feet.

"But you do need a nap, sweetie.  It's been a long stressful day, and I want you to get some sleep."

He walked towards her bed to pull back the blanket.

"Once you've had a nice nap, you'll feel a lot better, sweetheart."

 

Rebecca didn't stir and Charlotte was able to get her into her own bed for her own nap.

[Shy-Diapers]

Lani felt her heart racing. She didn’t know what to do! She rushed up to where Tom was and tried to push his hands away from her covers.

”NO!” She yelled as the tears in her eyes got bigger and harder to control.

She wasn’t able to stop him though since she was so small and didn’t know what to say.

As soon as Tom pulled back the covers on her bed, the large damp spot was exposed and the smell of stale pee hit the air immediately. Lani stood there shaking and burst into tears, not knowing what to say or do at this point. He knew and she couldn’t do anything about it.

“I’m sorry!” She stumbled out through sobs, her dragon dropping to the floor. 

[Ishigreensa]

Tom had no idea of what she was on about until he saw the wet bed, and he saw her drop her dragon and looked like a lonely toddler being carried off by a hobgoblin away from its family.

His heart broke and he squatted next to her and put an arm around her now thinking he understood.  No wonder she was so sensitive about being asked so much today.  The poor little child, this hanging over her head all day, afraid that at any minute, she was going to get caught, and probably all because she was scared of the new place, and of being swept from place to place, and who knows what was going through her little mind.

He picked up her dragon and handed it back to her.

"Your dragon buddy wants to be there for you," he told her.  "That's what he's for, to help you when you feel overwhelmed or scared of something."

He picked her up and after feeling her pants to make sure she was still dry, he whispered to her.

"I don't know what you've been told or been through, sweetheart, but in this house, we don't spank for wetting the bed.  Normally, there are reasons for that which have nothing to do with being bad or being unable to control yourself.  For example, you have been taken away from your mom without a good explanation.  You've been put with people that barely gave you a chance, and of course, you didn't know we'd be any different, did you baby?"

He carried her to his room, and he put her on his bed next to him.

"You still need a nap, baby.  You can't sleep in a wet bed, and don't worry.  I know it's not your fault, and no one is in trouble.  You were a scared little girl that had no idea what would happen the next day.  I'm not faulting you for that, sweetheart."

He rocked her a bit as he talked to her.

"Now, take comfort that you are here to stay for a while.  Regardless of what your file says, we are bent on giving you a chance, sweetie.  Even if your file is true, you can change the behavior in that file, if you are given a fair chance, okay?"

He rubbed her back.

"Now, what I want, is for you to relax and go to sleep.  Don't worry, I'll put some towels under you once you are asleep, because a fear like this doesn't just go away, and I won't mind if you are wet when you wake up again, okay?"

He hugged her tight.

"You're safe now, sweetheart."

[Shy-Diapers]

Lani sobbed uncontrollably as Tom spoke to her. The floodgates had opened and she couldn’t stop them no matter how hard she tried.

She clutched her dragon close to her chest when he gave it back to her, her little body shaking as Tom hugged her. The poor thing was terrified.

She wasn’t expecting to get spanked or anything. To be honest she didn’t know what she was expecting. Nobody knew she wet the bed, she’d never been caught before. This was extremely uncharted territory for her.

She shook her head and continued to shake and sob as he held her on his bed. She was too scared of another accident, especially in someone else’s bed, and even more especially in Tom and Charlotte’s.

She couldn’t last forever though. After a while of crying and shaking, her little body gave out and she fell asleep in Tom’s arms, her thumb in her mouth and her dragon tucked under her arm. 

[Ishigreensa]

Tom let the little one sleep for a few minutes before he made sure her dragon was tucked into a position to keep it dry if she wet but was in her grasp, and then he went and got some towels to put under her.  Then he went to get her bed cleaned up.

He walked through the kitchen a while later with the girls' wet bedclothes, and he took them to the laundry where he started the wash.  Then he went to find Charlotte.

"I had to put her in our bed.  She'd wet the bed last night, but I don't think anyone could blame her.  Strange house, people moving her on because they don't want to take a chance, and the little one just torn from her mother.  I know our little Becks would have done it, even if she didn't have trouble with it already."

He sat down.

"Don't worry, I put a good five or six towels under her in case she wets, and she's on my side of the bed, honey."

He looked over at her.

"Do you think we are doing the right thing, trying to give her a real chance, and taking care of her?" he asked.  "I only ask because as you so bluntly put it earlier, I'm falling for her, and I am probably not thinking logically."

[Shy-Diapers]

Charlotte frowned when she heard Tom. “Poor thing.” She said with a sigh. “I can’t blame her. She must be terrified and under so much stress.”

She sat down with her husband and gave a slight shrug. “Honestly I think that’s up to you at this point.” She said a little sadly. “It seems like you’re the one who will need to be caring for and helping her for the most part. She’s attached herself to you like a baby duckling and won’t even speak to me.” She continued with a small smile. “She’s definitely not what we expected when we said we’d foster a troubled seven year old.” She paused for a moment. “But her social worker did say we’re her last chance at a normal home. She’s already been bounced around so much I’d hate to see her have another new house. But what do you think? Are you up to it?”

[Ishigreensa]

"I am, but she's going to need you even if she isn't happy with it, I mean, if you expect me to keep my job, and I certainly think I should."

Tom frowned.  "I will call in on Monday though and take another week off so she has time to get used to you.  I do want to give her every chance because honestly, if her mom has any chance of getting better at all and taking her, which is what the child really wants, then I want to make sure that happens."

He smiled.

"But yeah, I can take care of the lost duckling for a while until she figures herself out."

Tom looked over at Charlotte.  "How is Becks taking it?  I'm not sure if she's going to understand my needing to be taking care of this child all the time for a while.  She's used to having her daddy time, you know?"

 

 

[Shy-Diapers]

“Of course I’m willing to help in any way I can. But I think she’s established you as her primary caregiver, at least for the time being.” Charlotte agreed.

She nodded as Tom continued. “I hope for her sake she is. Lani seems to want to go home so badly. So I’m glad that at least she’s with a family that will try to help her get back home.”

“Honestly she’s taking it pretty well. She’s kind of upset that Lani doesn’t talk to her much and she’s scared of upsetting her, but all in all she’s taking it really well. She’s starting to understand more that Lani is different than her and what she expected out of a foster kid. I think it’s going as good as it can be.” Charlotte responded, a little surprised at how smooth it’s been with Rebecca. 

[Ishigreensa]

"I'm glad she's doing well right now," he said.  "But I think she's probably going to need her mom a lot through this while I get Lani more able to accept where she is at the moment and try to make her feel safe enough to see you as someone other than a person that will cook or clean for her."

He smiled at Charlotte.  

"I mean, you were the one that wanted a kid to begin with, so I really think this is unfair, especially to you.  I would have gladly told them to give us a different kid, if I didn't already know so much about her and know that what she needs, is a lot of patience right now."

 

Rebecca started to stir.  She quickly checked her pants and the bedding around her and sighed when she saw she hadn't wet.  She was probably only asleep for about thirty minutes, but she didn't like wetting in the daytime even if it was due to a nap because to her, that made her even more a baby than wetting the bed at night.

Becky came down and saw her parents talking.

"Hey mom.  Hey dad.  Where's the little orph... I mean, the little one?"

[Shy-Diapers]

“Hopefully her mom can get things together enough to start visits relatively soon.” Charlotte agreed with a sigh.

She smiled a little sadly at Tom. “I know I was the one who wanted to foster or adopt. Of course I’m a little hurt Lani doesn’t like me yet, but I’m glad we’re giving her a safe home. I’m happy just doting on Becks a bit more in the meantime.” She chuckled.

“Hey sleepy head.” She said affectionately. “Lani is taking a nap upstairs. Today was a lot for her and she needs some time to relax and get some rest. She’s going through a hard time right now.” She hugged Rebecca when she came close and smiled. 

[Ishigreensa]

"Start visits?" Tom asked just as their child came in and he decided to stop there because he didn't want to worry her about business that she really had little to do with.  Her would ask Charlotte what she meant by that later on when Becks wasn't needing them.

"I didn't do it this time," she said to her mom the way she always spoke of wetting because she hated to even say the words.  "I know she's having a hard time.  She doesn't even want any friends, but when I was sleeping, I had a dream, and I got kind of scared.  I think I might get what she's going through, maybe?  I dreamed I lost you somewhere and couldn't find you, and started crying."

She looked up at her mom.

"That's why I had to come right down to make sure you were still here.  The dream... I knew it was a dream.. but it felt so, um... scary."

Tom walked over and patted her head.

"It's probably because you are seeing firsthand what it might be like to not know who you can trust with Lani," he told her.  "So you'll understand if I try to comfort her for a while since she seems okay to talk to me right now?"

Rebecca nodded but crawled up next to her mommy.

[Shy-Diapers]

Charlotte just gave Tom a look that indicated they’d talk more about the subject later.

“I’m glad sweetie.” She said smiling. “I don’t think it’s that she doesn’t want friends. She’s just scared and trying to figure everything out.” She nodded at Rebecca. “It’s a scary thing to feel all alone. It’s normal to feel scared like that.”

She smiled and pulled her daughter in close and wrapped an arm around her.

 

After a little over an hour of napping, Lani woke up crying in Tom’s bed. She was even more confused this time around. Not only was she not in her bed at home, but she wasn’t even in the same bed as the night before.

When her memory caught up to her she felt her cheeks get hot and her heart start racing more. Tom had found out that she wet her bed last night and laid her down here. She looked down at the towels underneath her and frowned. She’d soaked herself and the towels. The bed underneath was still dry, but Lani was still humiliated and scared.

She sat up and held her dragon to her chest as she cried quietly. She didn’t want to leave the room and get caught in soaking wet clothes by anyone, especially Rebecca since they were her clothes. She didn’t know where to go or what to do so she just sat there.