Believe in Me

"Kitty?" Mrs. Corinne called for me.

"In the back room." I said nonchalantly. "Don't come in. I'm still developing some stuff..."

The door of my secluded dark room swung open. White light flooded in. A sliver of which danced across the edge of my black ankle boots.

"Hurry, please." Mrs. Corinne stuffed her thin lips through the crack in the door. "You have another meeting."

I rolled my eyes to the blank photos in the liquid at my finger tips. My reflection gave me the same apathetic smile.

"That's the fifth today, I believe." I let the clear fluid drip off the edges of the pictures frame and hung it on the white string that stretched across the room.

My good friend Caleb's smile gleamed at me. It was a good photo session this afternoon. Autumn is the best time to take pictures. It's the way red, yellow, and orange leaves fall, and how the sun seems to set just as the breeze picks up. It's just beautiful.

"Kitty, come on." She pushed the door open all the way.

I turned around with my sleeve catching on to the edge of the developing fluid. It felt to the floor and spilled around my feet. "Shit... Can you please close the door? The light ruins the pictures."

Mrs. Corinne rolled her eyes just as I had done earlier. She shut the door again behind her. "Do you want to have a home or not? And don't use that language!"

I grabbed a mop. "I'm fine living here! And come on. I turn 18 in less than a month and then I'm technically no longer an 'orphan' or whatever the politically correct term is." I swirled the mop and it's stench around until the floor was free of any foreign.. crap.

"Then just get it over with!"

"Fine." I threw the mop to the side. "I'll pick one today, and I'll be out of your hair, but under one condition."

"Name it."

"No restrictions and I don't want anyone looking for me if I run away."

"That's two conditions."

"Fine! Then two conditions! Deal?"

"Oh, whatever. The next... family is here."

I raised my eyebrow, "Why so hesitant to say family?"

Mrs. Corinne shrugged. "They went against regulation and only sent their son to interview you."

"I'm fine with that." I swung open the door and walked over to the interview room.

Welcome to the Division Orphanage. Pay no mind to the name. It's not nearly as bad as it seems. At the age of eleven, I was dropped off here. I can't really remember anything before this stage. Mrs. Corinne said my parents were in a car accident or something, and because of the accident, I lost most of my memories. I never really liked lingering on the subject. This was my home. I grew up here.

And yet, it's "unhealthy" that I stay here my entire life. Legally, the second I turn eighteen, I'm supposed to leave.

Mrs. Corinne said that I need to experience family life before I do so. It wasn't really my cup of tea. All the families I'd met were either way too preppy or they just didn't seem interesting.

I wanted an edgy family. Maybe an artistic one.

I made my way down the familiar white corridor to the interview room. Before stepping inside, I tied my hair up in a messy ponytail. The loose strands of hair fell to the sides of my face and sat on the straps of my white tank top. I slid my phone into the back pocket of my skinny jeans and entered the room.

I started to laugh at the sight that caught my eye. A boy, probably my age, maybe older, was spinning around in the roller chair on the other side of the wooden table.

"Having fun?" I said.

The boy caught sight of me. His face became contorted as he made the chair come to a stop, "Shit!"

I smiled, "Don't let the lady in charge hear that language. I never got away with it."

"You're Kitty?" The boy said incredulously.

"I never am what people expect." I shrugged.

"No, it's not that. You just don't seem like someone who.." He ruffled his hair.

"Who grew up without any sight of sarcasm?" I chuckled. "I'm the most interesting person in this place."

He smiled, "I'm Kennedy." He extended his hand, and I took it.

"I'm, well, you already know who I am." I shook my head. "So why are you here?"

Kennedy rolled his eyes, "My parents think that I need a sibling now of all times."

"Now of all times being..?"

"I'm in a band, and we think we might be taking off soon."

Well, there's that artistic side I wanted. I liked Kennedy. He was good-looking. He was in a band. And judging by the way he acted when nobody was in the room, I think that living in a house with him would never be boring.

"A band, eh? That sounds cool."

Kennedy tilted his head to the side, "You know, I think my parents would like you. You look innocent, which I'm sure they'd love if you could act like it."

"I'm innocent around certain people." I winked.

He laughed, "I think you'd like my friends, too."

Hm, friends of a band guy. Interesting. Exciting. I like it.

"Do you mind if I call you Kit?" Kennedy suddenly asked.

I smirked, "Do you mind if I call you Kenny?"

We both smiled and nodded at the same time.

"I think I have made my decision." Kenny gave me a big grin. "So how does this work.."

"Oh, we walk up to the counter. See, I have a price sticker on the inside of my jeans - "

"Shut up!" He laughed at my sarcasm.

I think I'm going to like this.