The Orphanage

Rebecca May looked out the window of her room upstairs at the orphanage. She preferred to be called Becca instead of Rebecca. Becca was a beautiful girl with a pale complexion, blue eyes, and medium length blonde hair which she often styled it in various ways; straight, curly, or naturally waved.

The slim girl lost in her own thoughts until she heard someone called her name. "Becca! Becs! Big news!" Becca heard a high-pitched voice called her.

She turned around just to see Michelle Larsen, her roommate. Sometimes Michelle couldn't hold her excitement and it annoyed Becca so much.

Becca rolled her eyes, "What is it this time?"

"I heard Mrs. Atkins said on the phone that a couple will visit here today. They're looking for a kid to adopt. And I've heard they're like really rich and influential," Michelle informed her roommate.

"That's your big news?" Becca asked in monotone, not showing any interest at all.

Becca was the only 15-year-old girl in the orphanage. She was the oldest of all the other girls there, yet a very rebellious one. She never got adopted because people came and they always wanted to adopt toddlers or younger kids. She gave up her hope of being adopted about years ago and became very defiant ever since.

"You don't seem excited. You could be the lucky one, you know," Michelle said and took a seat next to Becca.

"Wait... When are they coming?" Becca asked suddenly.

"Around lunch time," Michelle answered.

Becca put her trouble smile on and got up from her seat. "Who says I'm not excited? I am," she said and walked to the kitchen.

She was excited because a brilliant idea just flitted into her mind. She was on lunch duty that day and she was planning to do a prank on the couple.

-----

Later that day, at around lunch time, Damian and Emily finally arrived at the orphanage. They knocked at the mahogany wood door of the orphanage and a middle-aged woman answered the door.

"Ah! Welcome, Mr. and Mrs. Osmond," she said.

"It's good to meet you Mrs. Atkins," Damian greeted and shook her hand.

"Please call me Emily," Emily said next and shook her hand as well. Mrs. Atkins nodded her head and smiled.

"Come on in," she invited them. She held the door open and stepped aside so that they could come in. Both of them stepped inside and Mrs. Atkins led them to the room which seemed like a living room. Two little girls ran around the room and smiled demurely at Damian and Emily when they noticed the couple.

Damian and Emily sat down on the brown couch as Mrs. Atkins called all the girls down. They met all the girls, most of them were around five to seven years old. They were all cute and adorable, but none of them really enchant Emily's heart.

Mrs. Atkins excused herself as she went to her office to retrieve some documents.

Becca, saw the opportunity, went out from the kitchen and brought two plates of sandwiches for Damian and Emily.

"Here, I made this for you," Becca said as she put the plates in front of them. She gave them the sweetest smile she could muster. Damian and Emily were touched by the gesture. Emily couldn't help thinking that the girl was so adorable and sweet.

"Aww thank you sweetie," Emily thanked her, "What's your name?"

"Becca," Becca answered her, her fake smile still plastered on her lips.

"Well thank you, Becca," Emily said again.

"No probs. Try it. I worked really hard to make them," she said.

Emily smiled to Becca as she took the sandwich. She took a bite and swallowed. She choked on it and her eyes went wide immediately. "Oh my God! It's hot!" she hollered as she jumped up and wagged her hands in front of her mouth, "It's really, really hot!"

"Honey, are you okay? What's wrong?" Damon asked, concerned. He got up and handed her one of the glass of water that Mrs. Atkins brought them earlier.

Emily took it from his hand and gulped every drop of the water in that glass, but she was still wagged her hands in front of her mouth.

"My mouth is burning, Damian," she managed to say and he handed her the other glass of water.

Becca couldn't help but let out a laugh. She giggled and a grin plastered on her face. After a few minutes, Emily finally stopped and she gasped for air. Damian rubbed her back for comfort. At the ruckus, Mrs. Atkins emerged from her office. With only one glance at the scene, she knew what was happening.

"Rebecca May!" a voice boomed from another side of the room. Mrs. Atkins glared at her as she put her hands on her hips. "What did you put on the sandwich?"

Becca looked at Mrs. Atkins and gave her a defiant look.

"None of your business, old lady," Becca answered.

Mrs. Atkins let out a sigh. "Just answer the question, Becca," she told her tiredly.

"Lots of hot peppers, hot sauce, and all kinds of spices," Becca admitted. A smirk appeared on her lips.

"Go to your room right now! I'll deal with you later," Mrs. Atkins ordered her.

"No," she retorted and crossed her arms over her chest.

Mrs. Atkins dedicated her with a stern look, but didn't say anything to her. Instead, she turned around to face Damian and Emily.

"Mr. and Mrs. Osmond, I apologize for this inconvenience," she said, "Why don't we continue our conversation in my office." She led them to her office, next to the living room. Mrs. Atkins closed the door behind her after Damian and Emily came in. They took a seat in front of Mrs. Atkins' desk.

"Once again, I'm so sorry for what Rebecca did. She's always been a troublemaker," Mrs. Atkins said as she took a seat behind her desk.

"It's okay Mrs. Atkins. Don't worry about it," Emily said and smiled at her, "Although... I'm curious. What's up with that kid? Why is she being like that?"

Mrs. Atkins sighed, "Rebecca May. Her parents left her here when she was five. It turned out they didn't want her. She was devastated when she found out about it. Becca was a sweet and innocent little girl, too bad no one wanted to adopt her. She acted up and started pulling pranks."

Emily looked at his husband. "Can we adopt her?" she asked.

Damian furrowed his eyebrows. "I don't know, Emily..."

"Damian, can't you see? She needs a guiding hand, but she also needs love. Both of us can give her that. I truly believe, under our care, she can be a good, sweet girl again." Emily's voice was barely above a whisper, but she knew with his vampire hearing, Damian heard every word clearly.

"We can change her life, Damian," Emily said again, resting her palm on his hand.

Damian held his wife's gaze for a moment. He had to admit he felt something when he saw Becca. He knew she was a special little girl the moment he laid eyes on her. Sure, she seemed to have a wild side, which reminded Damian of himself when he was younger. But, Emily was right. Without a guiding hand, this girl would lose her way. But, with unconditional love—and maybe a firm hand sometimes—this girl could achieve great things in life.

"Okay," Damian said finally. Emily squeezed his hand and they shared a meaningful smile.

Damian cleared his throat and turned to Mrs. Atkins. "We would like to adopt Rebecca May," Damian said resolutely.

Mrs. Atkins was taken aback by their decision, but she smiled and nodded. They immediately worked on the paperwork for the adoption. The adoption process usually took around two or three days, but using his influence of being an Osmond, Damian managed to get it done in just half an hour.

When they finished, Mrs. Atkins told a girl to send Becca to her office, then busied herself checking over the documents.

"Who would've thought. I still have my charm," Damian whispered in his wife's ear, a playful grin on his lips.

Emily slapped his shoulder playfully and rolled her eyes. They both knew it was not Damian's charm that sped the process up. Osmond was one of the oldest families in Crescent Hills. The lineage had made a lot of contributions to the town. Benefactors, members of the board, and so on, and so forth. So, of course carrying that family name did the trick and sped up the adoption process.

"You do. But that charm is reserved for me and only me," Emily whispered back to Damian.

Damian put his forefinger under Emily's chin to make her look into his eyes. "Only for you," he said softly and leaned in for a kiss.

Right as they broke the kiss, Becca barged into the room.

"What do you want?" she demanded, scowling. She crossed her arms over her chest, "If you want me to apologize to them, it's not going to happen."

"We would like to adopt you, Rebecca," Emily told her.

Becca stopped dead in her tracks with her mouth slightly open. "What?!" she gawked.