Awakening

Derrick stared at the steering wheel of the car, waiting for Carrie to come out of the house. It was the next morning and Kara and Cory were with the next door neighbours for the afternoon while they went to the hospital to meet Toby. It was a weird feeling thinking that he would have a new son in an hours’ time. But that was the world of foster care for you, your life could completely change in a matter of hours. Like when they started fostering little Kara 6 months ago, she was petrified of any men, or adults in general really. The social worker Laura didn’t know the whole story but as far as they could make out Kara had a drunken father who beat her and her mother and one day he’d gotten too violent and pushed his wife over the balcony and killed her, while 5 year old Kara watched, curled up in the corner of the room. That’s where the ambulance crew found her, she hardly spoke a word these days even though she was reported to be a chatter box before the incident. Even going to the neighbour’s house was difficult for her but she had been assured it was only for a couple of hours and then they would come back with her new big brother. That seemed to pacify her, for now.
Carrie came out of the house and he studied her as she locked the front door. He really was the luckiest guy ever to have found her. He knew she had a troubled past that he hadn’t quite got out of her yet but she had pushed past whatever it was and now she was a strong woman with an amazing faith in God. That was why their relationship was so strong because God was at the centre of every decision they made. Last night they had prayed together over Toby and felt they were making the right decision to try to help the boy.
She walked over to the car, he noticed she was wearing a new dress today and her long, curly brunette hair flew in the breeze. She still took his breath away after 5 years of marriage.
‘You’re beautiful.’ He couldn’t contain himself as she opened the door and got into the passenger seat. He reached over and kissed her, he wanted to show her how much she meant to him. She broke it as she looked at the clock:
‘Come one honey, we'll be late.’

Toby sat in a meeting room somewhere on the paediatric ward with Jenny and a woman he hadn’t met before, another social worker? Whoever she was she seemed to know Jenny well and said her name was Laura. His new foster parents were going to be here any minute and he could already predict the routine: he’d meet them, go home with them, sleep, go to school, start acting up and in a week he’d be given up on again. That was why he never attempted to connect with anyone other than Jenny ‘cos everyone else always gave up on him. Interrupting his thoughts was a knock at the door. Laura crossed the floor, sidestepping the 6 person table that filled most of the room and answered the door.
‘Derrick! Carrie! Please come in and meet Toby. Toby these are your new foster parents.’ Standing in the doorway was a pretty, brunette woman and a tall, muscly, blond haired man holding hands, the picture of a happy couple. His heart broke at the realisation that they were the perfect family he wanted and that he was going to lose them as they were going to give up on him. The woman, Carrie, stepped over to the table and took a seat nearest to him.
‘Toby, right?’ He nodded in response as she looked into his eyes.
Derrick came from behind him and offered a firm handshake and a look of compassion and hope flashed in Derricks eyes as Toby took his hand.
‘How you doing son? Feeling better?’ Toby was startled by the word ‘son’. He couldn’t remember the last time he was called that, it felt good.
‘Um…my head hurts less but my leg is killing me, thanks.’ He offered a weak smile to Derrick as he took a seat next to Carrie.
‘Toby, would you like to hear some things about our family before you make your decision as to whether you want to come with us?’ Derrick offered this to him and Toby was again startled, no one had ever offered him a choice as to whether he wanted to go with them, it had always just been organised for him and he’d obeyed.
‘Um…yeah, sure.’ He wasn’t sure what else to say. Derrick leaned forward onto the table and looked at him.
‘Well Toby, we live in a house in the suburbs which we’re really happy in. It’s got a pretty cool garden, and a garden shed where I normally disappear to for most of the day…’
‘And don’t I know it!’ Carrie rolled her eyes and Derrick and he elbowed her in the side.
‘I’ve got to escape your orders of washing up somehow!’ Derrick leaned back in his chair so Carrie couldn’t see him and pointed at her and made a ‘crazy’ hand sign and poked his tongue out at her. Toby chuckled, this was different, they were different. Carrie sighed.
‘Darling, you’re forgetting the mirror on the opposite wall.’ She made an accusing look at him and he made a ‘whoops’ face, Toby couldn’t help but laugh.
‘Busted.’ Toby was warming to them already. Derrick looked at him,
‘Too right mate. Right now, where was I? Oh yeah, well we already have two foster children, Kara and Cory. They’re six and four so they’re at that adorable age where they ask so many questions about basically nothing.’ Derrick smiled. Carrie took over.
‘We only ask three things of any child who enters our house. Respect yourself. Respect us. Respect God. Think you can give that a shot?’
Toby took a moment to think about that, they really weren’t like anyone he’d ever met…he didn’t want to get too caught up yet thought, they were likely to give up on him anyway in a week or so.
‘Yeah, I’ll try.’
‘Good man.