A Promise
Tuesday, July 07, 2015
submitted by SOFEA AZLAN;
Kim was nervous
when the door opened. This was her very first interview. A look of concern
spread across my face. I raised my eyebrows and asked her, “Are you alright?”
She looked up at me
with her two hazel eyes and nodded. Her big eyes were two pools of worry. She
looked like she had something to say, but the poor little girl was really
nervous. Quickly and quietly she said, “What if they don’t like me? Can I just
stay here with you, Ms Fletcher?”
I gave her a
serious look. “Kim, one of our main purposes is finding all our kids a home”.
In a softer tone, I said, “You’ll find a nice home, I promise”. I placed my
hand on her little one and gave it a squeeze.
Mr and Mrs Lennon
entered the rather squarish room with big, wide smiles upon their faces. I
smiled and greeted them. I told Kim to do the same, but she just shook her
head. Mr and Mrs Lennon looked like they already had second thoughts, but they
still played along and commented on how cute she looked. Throughout the entire
interview, Kim held her head down and only nodded and shook her head when she
was asked a question.
By the end of the
interview, I had already known that they wanted a more open child. I thanked
them anyway, and wished them that they would find the right child.
“Kim?”
She looked at me
with both her eyebrows raised, “Yes, Ms Fletcher?”
“Let’s go for a
walk in the park.”
She nodded and got
off her chair.
The park was just
in front of the orphanage, it was a nice park, not too big, not too small. With
her little hand in mine, we took a stroll.
“Kim, you have to
be more open. Don’t be shy and show them that you are a great child.”
Kim looked at her
feet. A minute went by before she answered, “But I didn’t want them to have
me.”
I crouched down and
placed both my hands on her shoulders. I looked her in the eye and asked,
“Why?”
“…I want to be with
you, Ms Fletcher. Why can’t you be my mum?”
My heart melted.
Such a sweet little girl. Whenever she had something wrong, she always came to
me. Whenever she had a nightmare, she’d always come to me, with her nightie and
a teddy bear in one arm.
“…Because you need
parents. A family. A couple that can raise you well and provide you with a
brighter future. And plus, I have to take care of all the other kids in the
orphanage.”
She cringed at the
word ‘orphanage’. “But Ms Fletcher, I already have a family, you are my mum, Ms
Hiddle and Ms Lange are my aunts and everyone is my brother and my sister.
“I’m sorry, Kim.
But this is only your temporary home. This is also my temporary home.”
“How is it your
temporary home? Don’t you have a family?”
“Yes, I do. But
once I’m married, I’m going to move somewhere far from here.” My heart twisted.
She was the first kid in the orphanage to know. I wasn’t supposed to pick
favourites, but Kim was definitely my favourite.
Her eyes went wide
and she gasped. “But why?”
I squeezed her
shoulders. “I’m sorry, Kim… He had a good offer and couldn’t decline it.”
With her eyes still
wide she asked, “Who is he?”
I looked at her
tiny feet before looking into her eyes. “My fiancé.”
“How come I’ve
never met him before?”
“…He doesn’t live around here. He lives over there, the
place that I’ll be moving to…”
She looked like she
was going to cry. “You’re going to leave me here…”
I pulled her and
hugged her. I stroke her dark brown locks and quietly said, “That’s why I need
to know that you’ve found a good home, before I leave.” I pulled her away from
me and looked at her in the eye again. “Can you do that for me?”
Reluctantly, she
nodded. She didn’t look at me in the eye when she did it.
The walk back to the
orphanage was quiet. Just as we were about to exit the park, Kim stopped. She
gripped my hand tightly and her eyes seemed to spark. Rather excitedly, she
looked up at me. “Ms Fletcher, can I come along with you then? You’ll be my mum
and your fiancé my dad.”
Softly, I told her,
“I’m sorry, Kim. There are far too many things that have to be settled.”
It was obvious that
I burst her bubble.
At the entrance of
the orphanage, she gripped my hand tightly and said, “Then come back for me
once you’ve settled everything. I don’t care how long it will take, I will wait
for you. I know that you will give me a good home. You want to see me go to a
good home before you leave, but Ms Fletcher, no home is complete without you.”
“Oh, Kim.” I gave
her a hug.
Still wrapped in
our embrace, she asked, “Do you promise?”
Softly, I said, “I
do. I promise.”
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