Part One: Chapter One

Part One: The Spider

“Charlotte?”

Charlotte Montgomery listened to the call of her name, but didn’t react. Instead, she bored into the yellowing chipped paint of her ceiling.

“Charlotte.” Ms. Watson pushed Charlotte’s door open. The sharp snippy woman softened when she entered the room. “Chuck, I know it’s hard for you.”

Charlotte propped herself up on her elbows. The cast covering her leg was in full view. She still didn’t speak. Her dark curls hung down over her shoulders. She switched her gaze to Ms. Walton.

“Charlotte, you didn’t eat yesterday.” She sat on the edge of the bed. “I know you miss them.”

The girl merely breathed at Ms. Walton and pushed up her glasses.

“Think of it this way. When you’re eighteen, you can move into your parents’ house.”

“Without them,” she finally stated. Charlotte glared at the hand on her shoulder. “Don’t.”

“Your friend, Rachael is here to see you. Come down and see her.”

She swung her feet over the side, taking extra care with her left leg. After fumbling around for a pair of cheap wooden crutches, she lifted herself from the ground.

Ms. Watson helped her down the stairs.

A tall girl with dirty blonde hair stood in the doorway. Her face contorted in horror when Charlotte clambered down the narrow stairway. She trapped the broken girl in a tight embrace. “Chuck, I heard a few weeks ago, but they said-”

“Rachael, why don’t you and Charlotte talk at the table?”

Tears poured down Rachael’s round face. “Tell me everything,” She sobbed into Charlotte’s shoulder.

Charlotte limped sluggishly to the oak table where Rachael dropped across from her. “What do you want to know?”

“How’d you get here?”

She stared at the table. “Any part of my family that liked me is dead. The rest dumped me here.”

“I’m so sorry. I can’t even think about losing…”

“I just keeping thinking…that I’m ten and this is a babysitter’s house. And they’ll be home any minute…”

Rachael was silent until she wondered, “What happened to Robbie?”

“H-he lived through the car crash, b-but he bled out at the hospital.” Chuck buried her face in her hand.

“When does that come off?”

“Next month hopefully.”

Rachael frowned, “So no cross country then huh?”

“I’m probably going to have to wait until spring like the newbies.”

A smile danced on Rachael’s lips. “So am I finally going to be able to outrun you?”

Trying to stay upbeat, Chuck replied, “You wish.” After a moment of comforting silence, Charlotte revealed her eyes rimmed with red. “I’m sorry, Rachael.”

“Chuck, don’t apologize.”

“…I just miss them…so much. What am I going to do? They told me this foster home was only temporary. There are so many messed up foster homes out there…and I don’t want to end up in any of them. I just…I want my mom and dad. I want Robbie to knock me on the shoulder and tell me that I’m a butthead.” Tears rolled down her cheeks. “I’m sorry.”

Rachael held Chuck’s shoulder to comfort her. “As soon as you feel polyurethane and rubber under your sneakers, you’ll feel right at home.”

The thought heightened Charlotte a bit. Running was her escape, the ultimate feeling of freedom. “Thanks.”

“I’m heading to the gym so I’ll see you later, okay?”

“Yeah, I’ll probably have to head back to school soon anyway…”

Rachael hugged her friend one last time, before hustling out the door.

 

Later on in the day as Chuck rested her eyes, Ms. Watson called up the stairs once more, “Charlotte, there’s…someone else here to see you.”

Sighing, Chuck limped down the stairs again.

In the parlor stood a man in old-fashioned formal attire. “Ah, you must be Charlotte. My name is Giovanni DiRagno.” His face was rumpled with age. The hand he held out of Charlotte to shake felt like smoothed silk.

She pulled back from his handshake. “It’s nice to meet you, Mister DiRagno.”

“Charlotte, I do not beat around the bush. My wife and I have read your file and would like to adopt you.”

“…But I’m fifteen. You want to adopt a teenager?”

Ms. Watson hissed, “Don’t be rude, Charlotte.”

Revealing his baldhead, the old man put his hat in his hands. “Oh no, it is fine. All of my own children died in their youth. To see one off into the world would be our greatest pleasure.”

“The adoption will take time of course. In the meantime, you’ll remain here. You’ll have time to adjust,” Ms. Watson chimed in.

“Your acceptance would be most gratifying, Charlotte.” The man held his hand out again. “Until then, Charlotte.”

Reluctantly, Chuck pulled out her hand and the man’s soft chilled hands slid against hers.

As soon as he was out the door, Ms. Watson turned to Charlotte. “How could you be so rude!”

“I’m sorry. My parents only died about a month ago! I wasn’t expecting to be adopted!”

Ms. Watson exhaled. “You have to take this maturely. That’s what your parents would want.”

Charlotte snapped, “They don’t want anything anymore. They’re dead.”

Ms. Watson asked, “What’s wrong with you?”

Charlotte did not have an answer for her question. An ache in her chest confirmed that it was bitter frost coating the sore longing for the way her life used to be. “I’m sorry. It’s just…everything.”

“I know. You can’t just stop your life though. You’re going to be adopted by Mr. and Mrs. DiRagno whether you like it or not. They want to help you.”

Charlotte simply sighed again and decided to sleep on it. She peered in the darkness around the poor excuse for a bedroom. With her glasses on the nightstand, even the tacky outdated light fixture close to her head was out of focus. Sleep proved difficult against the pain beneath her cast. Charlotte moved her body upright. She reached out her hand and rubbed her leg disguised in the cast. “I need you. You’re all I have left. Please. I need to run. I need to.”

Author's Note

The real beginning!

Reviews

[Arien Bleuefire]

ooooo! intriguing! only one bit is confusing... is her name ms wlton or watson? you used both terms, but other than that, very good start!

[stellasautelle]

I like it... keep up the good work :)

[snapjack]

The beggining had me wanting to read more to figure out just what happened, but to the middle was a very nice way to reveal it. If I was Charlotte, I would be thinking he was a little bit of a creeper. Can't wait to read the next chapter to figure it out. :)

(and thank you for reviewing mine and I'm sorry I haven't really returned the favor, I've been impeccably busy with school, but I've been waiting to finish reading it so :D)