#fosterdaughter

You hated this part, moving to a new home, learning all their rules and expectations, and figuring out your place in their home, which was usually the unwanted house guest.

Careful not to wake the other girls you got dressed and packed the last of your things. You were jealous of them, unlike you, they weren't traveling very far. Their new homes were only a couple hours away, so they didn't have to leave till 10. Besides yourself, Jessie was the only one leaving the state, but even then she was only going to North Dakota, a state over not flying across the country. And everyone suspected that she was only leaving the state was because she had just recently turned eighteen and her move was supposed to help her begin to get settled on her own before the new year.

You pulled your suitcase out to the hall and went to the bathroom to finish getting ready and then made your way down the stairs.

Ms. Shaw was sitting at the kitchen table with a cup of coffee in front of her. She didn't look too happy to be up this early either, but nevertheless, she got up and made you a simple breakfast of eggs and toast. You grabbed the orange juice from the fridge, poured yourself a glass, and sat down at the table.

"All packed?" She asked.

You nodded your head. "Yeah, everything is upstairs in the hall."

"How much clothes did you pack?"

"All of them." You said simply. You owned two pairs of pants, nine shirts, and three sweatshirts it would be enough to get you through a week, you would just have to do regular washes to get through the month, but that was no different than life here.

Ms. Shaw nodded her head, "Did it all fit in the suitcase?"

You nodded your head while you finished chewing. You didn't have much for personal items, so you were able to squeeze it all into one suitcase, though it was heavy.

"Did you get your puzzle book?"

"It's in the bag."

She nodded her head taking another sip of her coffee. "The case worker will be here in twenty minutes. So if there is anything else you need to do before you leave you better finish up. Please put those dishes in the dishwasher when you are done." Ms. Shaw said before leaving the room.

You frowned at the reminder. You were not the least bit excited at the "opportunity presented to you" as Kyle had put it. You were terrified of the month that awaited you after you boarded that plane bound for Texas. You were certain by how long it took for Kyle to get the program running that you and the other kids would not be heading into any of the bad and abusive homes that many foster kids ended up in at least once during their time in the system but that did not give you any comfort. Just because they were good people doesn't mean you would fit in with their family, it didn't mean you wouldn't clash and butt heads with them due to your different personalities. Hell, you fought with your own parents how were you supposed to make someone else love you?

That was a question you had been asking yourself since you ended up in the foster care system, but now the answer was clear. You couldn't. Your family was gone and your chance at happiness along with it. Your destiny now was to remain in the foster care system until you aged out and after that find some crap job to barely make ends meet and to live a sad and pointless life.

Taking a last swig of your orange juice you made up your mind. You would do what you needed to get by for the next month, you would be yourself but not even bother cozying up to the family, it would be pointless as you would be coming back here at the end of the holiday season.

You put your plate and glass in the dishwasher as Ms. Shaw requested. Then you went back upstairs to grab your suitcase and brought it down to the front entryway. You took a glance out of the window on the door looking for the caseworker who was supposed to pick you up. In all honesty, you would be happy if they just didn't show up.

Letting out a sigh you wandered aimlessly around the bottom floor not really sure what you were supposed to do now. Your sources of entertainment were either packed away or there wasn't enough time to even bother starting it.

You found Ms. Shaw in the living room watching the news and you joined her on the couch. The meteorologist was calling for another cold snowy day here, you would think with the way the weather had been that you were in the middle of winter not the beginning of it. But then again you wouldn't have to worry about that seeing as you wouldn't be here much longer.

"Texas is supposed to be warmer, in the 50s." Ms. Shaw said as if she had been reading your thoughts. You looked over to see she had pulled up the forecast on her phone. "You still might need that coat though; Texas doesn't winter like we do but it still can get cold. I placed your coat on the hook in the entryway and your sneakers below that."

"Thank you."

"We don't have much time before you have to leave, but I hope you have a good month and Merry Christmas. If you need anything, if they're not as nice as we think you have both mine and Kyle's numbers. Don't hesitate to call us if you feel scared."

You nodded your head, "I will.. believe me."

She shook her head at you. "I don't believe anything should happen, but I just wanted to say it just in case. But Y/N give them a chance, I know you already have your opinions and assumptions of them right now but don't believe what your head is trying to tell just yet, they may surprise you."

You wanted to roll your eyes and mumble out a sarcastic 'I doubt that' but you knew that would only result in a lecture from her about manners amongst other things. So you opted to change the conversation instead, "You gonna manage in a house by yourself for a month?"

She let out a chuckle, "I think I can get by. Got to say it will be weird at first, but I will enjoy the peace and quiet." You could tell she trying to hide how happy she was to have her house to herself again. Ms. Shaw was a different foster parent as in she wasn't too thrilled to actually be one but nevertheless agreed to allow you and others to stay there. She was very much detached from all of you, but she also was there when you need her to be.

"Can I ask you a question?"

"Yeah," She responded still watching the news.

"Why am I getting sent so far away while everyone else is staying in the state?"

Ms. Shaw let out a sigh and turn to face you, "I honestly don't know. I was only told this was happening two days before you guys and it's not like they consulted me on their plans."

You nodded your heading knowing it was a long shot but had to ask anyways.

Before you could speak again the doorbell rang which made your heart race and you closed your eyes taking a moment to yourself before you were forced into a new life, again.

When Ms. Shaw opened the front door a woman was standing on the front porch. You were surprised by how formal she was dressed in her blazer with her social work ID around her neck, you figured that would be uncomfortable for the flight but it wasn't your problem so you shrugged it off.

Ms. Shaw opened the door a little wider allowing her to step in out of the cold. "Good morning, I'm Lauren and you're Y/N, right?"

You simply nodded your head in response not really caring to make small talk and also because you were too nervous about everything that was about to happen.

"Well if you're all set we better get going. We don't want to miss our flight."

You nodded again and picked up your bag knowing no one was going to grab it for you.

"Y/N why don't you go wait in the car while I talk to Lauren." Ms. Shaw said. You followed her directions and made your way down the steps hearing the snow crunch under your feet as you made your way to Lauren's car. "And Y/N, be good." Ms. Shaw shouted after you.

You put your suitcase in the backseat and then climbed into the passenger's seat and starred back up the porch at Ms. Shaw and Lauren, wondering what they were talking about. Was Ms. Shaw telling her all about your bad attitude and behavior so she could warn the family or was she looking out for you, telling Lauren how scared and nervous you were?"

You hated how much she could switch back and forth and how you could never read her and know how she would react.

Their conversation was short, and you were then driving away from the house you've been at for nearly two years. You were surprised by how sad you felt as you watched the house fade in the distance, but it had been the one thing that was constant in your life after your life was uprooted four years ago and weren't ready for change.

When you got on the main road, Lauren turned on the radio, and Christmas music started playing out of the speakers. You rolled your eyes, Thanksgiving was only a few days ago and everybody was already acting like Christmas is tomorrow.

You sat in silence for most of the ride to the airport. You would answer questions if Lauren asked but you did so simply not really wanting to talk. All you really wanted was to curl back up in your bed, but that wasn't an option.

Despite how early it was the parking lot of the airport was full and Lauren had to drive up and down several rows to find a parking spot.

And from the moment she parked the car she seemed to be rushing. She had jumped out of the driver's seat, opened the back door and began shoving some last minute things into her carry on.

You followed her pace, fearing what would happen if you missed your flight. You grabbed your heavy suitcase and dragged it to the back of the car where Lauren was waiting, and she led the way up the parking lot.

Despite the fact your suitcase had wheels you struggled to pull it along due to the layer of snow on the parking lot that had yet to be plowed and the strong wind blowing in your face.

"What time is our flight?" You asked once you were inside the building, partially out of breath from fighting against the wind and struggling with your suitcase.

"Nine." Lauren said looking at the sign trying to see which direction to take.

Nine? Why were you here so early when your flight wasn't for another three hours you wondered? You were tired from not sleeping and scared and nervous beyond belief and now you were angry about being here so early when you could have maybe slept in a little more before such a big change in your life.

Lauren didn't seem to notice your change in mood as she was too distracted navigating your way through the airport, that and you hardly spoke to her anyways. You were bittered as you followed her around the airport. And your anger only seemed to increase as you waited and waited around the airport.

You had to wait in line to check in for roughly thirty minutes. Then you had to go through several security checks and now you were currently waiting at your ticket gate waiting to board the plane.

You had been sitting there for at least ten minutes now and you getting more frustrated by the minute. "Why can't we just get on already." You said bitterly.

"They don't have the ramp up yet."

"Well, how long is that going to take?" You said annoyed. You were bored and frustrated because you had nothing to do to pass the time.

"Not sure, probably a while. The plane is not even ready yet. We don't start boarding till at least 8:45."

You glanced up at the clock seeing that was thirty minutes from now and you groaned in frustration

"Why did we get here so early then? Why couldn't we get here when it was time to board." You said bitter.

"Because that's not how airports work. You saw how long it took us to go through check in, it would have been worse if we got here any later and then we would have missed our flight."

You huffed out in frustration and Lauren glance down at you in response and began digging in her bag which she was allowed to keep one her due to its smaller size. "Here." She said handing you a book.

You side eyed the object not really interested in it until you saw what it was. It was a word search puzzle book but not just a book it was your book. You knew because of the ripped corner on the back which happened when Sarah tried to take it from you not realizing it wasn't something for everybody to use and that it was yours. You looked at it questioningly, you had packed it in your suitcase which you had left at baggage.

"Ms. Shaw pulled it out for you, she knew you would want it."

You took it from her feeling a little bit better but still bitter, it would probably be a while before you could shake that feeling due to how anxious and inpatient you were right now.

You opened it up to the page you left off on and began working on your book, glad to have something to do.

Lauren nudged your arm not a few seconds later trying to hand you a pen so you could work on it.

"No thanks." You told her before going back to your book. You never marked the words once you found them and just simply moved on to work on the next word.

You were glad to have some distraction to pass the time though time did still seem to pass slowly but that was because of how anxious you were.

"Flight 521 boarding at gate 8 may now begin boarding." Was said through an overhead speaker.

You followed Lauren and had to wait in another line to hand over your ticket and then board the ramp. You continued to work on your book as you waited, and you nearly finished your second puzzle when Lauren took the book from you and put it away when you were close enough. She said she was going to put it in her bag for safe keeping until you boarded the plane, and you gave it over not too happy about it though.

After putting it away she handed you your ticket and told you multiple times that you needed to whole onto it tight until you got to the front, and you needed to hand it over to the attendant when she asked for it.

Once you were boarded you sat nervously in your seat, shaking your leg in an anxious matter. You were seated against the window but that didn't make you as happy as Lauren thought it would. You weren't even happy when Lauren gave you back your word search book for you to pass the time with while the plane was still being boarded.

You were just too nervous to concentrate. Your heart was racing in your chest, and you felt like it was going to burst out of your chest when the plane doors shut, and the flight attendant began the pre-flight instructions.

You couldn't stop yourself from shaking when the plane began to accelerate down the runway.

"It will be okay once we're in the air." Lauren said taking your hand.

It was meant to be an act of comfort, but it didn't do much to help calm your nerves.

It felt like ages until the plane leveled out and it took you even longer to settle down afterwards but once your heart rate returned to a normal level you took out your puzzle book to work on for the rest of your three-hour flight.

***

The descendant of the plane was just as bad as the ascendant especially when the wheels first made an impact with the runway, it shook the plane and made you squeak in shock.

The plane ride had been nerve racking on you and combined with your lack of sleep you were exhausted and just wanted to lie down, but that wasn't possible as you had to wait for your bag to be unloaded from the plane. It was half an hour before your suitcase was unloaded and ready to be picked up at baggage and the wait only drained you further.

You were currently in the car on your way to your temporary living arrangements. You knew what was expected of you, Kyle and the other social service agents expected you to be respectful and engaged when you met the family. They didn't want you to be stand offish and unapproachable, after all, first impressions were everything. But right now you were too tired to care, besides you knew that you would be leaving in a month so you figured you would just live with whatever they thought of you in your short time there.

You were pulled from your thoughts when you felt the car stop and when you glanced up to get a first look at the house you would be staying in your eyes widened in shock. 'This has to be a joke," You thought. You had expected some middle-class home with a small yard and not enough bedrooms so you would be forced to share, much like the home you just came from.

Instead, you were staring at an elegant house which was probably bigger than all your previous houses combined. It had a fairly large two car door garage attached to the side and no doubt had a large yard in the back.

"Where are we?"

"Your new home." Lauren stated simply as she climbed out of the car.

You however did not, you just wanted this cruel joke to end. No one who could afford this type of house wanted someone like you. It would be like putting an old, shabby couch in Buckingham Palace, it didn't belong.

When you didn't get out Lauren knocked on your window and when you refused to respond she opened the door, "Come on, they're waiting for you." She said cheerly.

"That's not funny," you said bitterly.

"What's not funny?"

"Enough! Just take me to their actual house." You said fed up with the games.

She frowned and gave you a hard glare in response to your attitude, but she let it pass for now and knelt down to your level. "Y/N, this is their home." She tried to explain in a gentle voice.

"No one like that," You said pointing to their house "Wants someone like me." You said crossing your arms over your chest.

Lauren's tone change clearly done trying to reason with you and probably annoyed by the show you were most likely making for the people inside. "Y/N this is your home, this is where you will be staying." She said sternly. "Take a minute to calm down and then we will go inside to meet them. They're not what you think they are, just give them a chance." She said in a gentler voice.

You shook your head and rolled your eyes. She gave you a minute to yourself while she pulled your suitcase out from the back.

It all made sense to you now, why someone will be so willing to host a foster kid in their house especially during the month of Christmas, they weren't doing it out of the kindness of their hearts. They were doing it to show off to their rich friends like a competition of who could give back more. You imagined they felt proud and powerful giving just a little bit back to the pour, unwanted foster kid who had nothing to her name. You felt disgusted at the thought.

"Come on Y/N." Lauren said clearly thinking you had enough to stew. You rolled your eyes climbing out of the car and took your bag from Lauren's outstretched hand. "Be nice," She reminded you firmly.

Lauren led you up the front door and knocked hard on the large wooden door. You could hear the sound of kids running and screaming in excitement on the inside and you were less than pleased about having to share the house with snobby rich kids.

You didn't have to wait long before the door opened, a woman standing on the other side and a man not too far behind her standing in an open doorway of what you assumed would be a living room.

"Hi, welcome." She said in a bright and cheerful voice, motioning for you and Lauren to step inside.

"Here let me take that from you," Said the man reaching forward to grab your heavy suitcase from you. He touch your hand in the process and you were quick to pull it away, you weren't really comfortable with physical contact especially with new people. The only reason Lauren got to hold your hand on the plane was because you were too preoccupied with fear to do anything about it.

"You must be Y/N." The woman said closing the door behind you. "We're so happy to meet you and that you could join us for the holidays." She held out her hand motioning for you to step into the living room. When you remained still, Lauren took the initiative to lead the way and you grudgingly followed her.

In the living room, three eager children were nearly bouncing in their places on the couch, they looked like they wanted to jump up and surround you in a tight hug, but thankfully they didn't seeming to be waiting for permission from the adults first. You and Lauren sat on one couch and the man and woman sat across from you on the other couch on either side of their children.

"Y/N we're so happy to have you here in our house! My name is Jared, and this is my wife Gen, and these are our three children; Thomas, Sheppard, and Odette." Each child gave you a friendly wave when their name was called.

Lauren gave you a discrete nudge with her elbow clearing not happy with the brief silence that occurred after he finished speaking.

"Nice to meet you." You said simply, too tired to fake being cheerful.

"Kids why don't you guys go play while we talk to Y/N for a bit." Gen said.

The young girl, Odette, whined in response. "We..want play... with her" She said in a broken sentence.

"Later." Jared said. "Let's let Y/N get settled it for a bit and then you guys can play with her later."

Without another word the three kids took off to play in some other part of the house, leaving you with the adults.

"How was your flight?" Jared asked once the kids had left.

You sat quietly thinking Lauren would answer but you then realized all eyes were on you. "Long."

"I figured; you look tired."

You mentally groaned knowing Lauren would probably scold you later for being unapproachable.

"Well we will make this short, so you can get some rest. We want you to feel welcomed and comfortable here and if there's anything we can do to make you feel more at home please let us know. Most importantly we want you to know this is your home too."

'Yeah, right,' you thought. You've heard this speech before it was just to keep up pretenses while Lauren was here as soon as she would leave they would drop this nice act and lay all the rules and expectations on you.

You just nodded your head in response.

"Why don't we show you to your room now and we can give you a house tour later after you get settled in unless you rather have the tour before?"

"After's fine."

"Alright let's go show you to your room." Jared said clapping his hands together and then standing up. Gen followed him right after and you took a deep breath before standing up yourself. You went to grab your suitcase which Jared left in the entryway, but Gen stopped you.

"Oh don't worry about it honey this is why I keep Jared around," She said grabbing his forearm and giving it a squeeze. "Sometimes you need a nice strong man around for tasks like these." She said laughing and Jared joined her.

"Well, it's good to know I'm useful."

The pair led you up the twisting staircase to the second floor, when you glanced behind you, you saw that Lauren had decided not to follow but to wait downstairs allowing you and your new foster parents some time to get to know each other better.

As they led you around the second-floor hallway they began pointing out rooms to you.

"I know we said we'd do a tour later, but I just want you to know where our room is in case you need us." Gen explained.

You just nodded your head and continued following them down the hall until they stopped at a closed door. Jared and Gen stood on either side of the door frame, "This is your room." Jared said before he opened the door. They both waited outside the door wanting you to be the first one to enter the room.

You were surprised not only how big the room was but the fact that it look like it would be just for you. The only time you had your own room was in your old life and even then it was never this big. The wall was a light beige color with a grey carpet spread on the floor. There was a full-size bed in the middle of the room with a dresser and closet on opposite sides of walls of the bed. Additionally, there was a large window overlooking the backyard.

Taking one glimpse out of it your suspicions were confirmed, the yard was huge. The yard held a playset for the kids to play on but also an inground pool and still had enough open grassy areas for the kids to run around freely without bumping into anything.

"Well, what do you think?" Gen said pulling you from your thoughts.

"It's nice," You said detached.

"If there is anything you want to change or want to add we'd be happy to oblige. As we said downstairs, this is your house too and we want you to decorate your room any way you want." Jared said.

You shook your head. As much as your inner self would love to have the chance to decorate your room for the first time ever you saw no point in it as this was not your room. The way was styled simply made it appear as a guest room for their friends to stay in. And for December you just happened to be the guest. And you wouldn't be here that long anyway so there was no point in taking the time to build your own personalized space when you would leave it after a month. "No, it's fine as it is."

"Alright, well if you change your mind don't be afraid to ask." Gen said.

"There's still plenty more we need to talk about, but we have time for that later. For now, why don't you unpack and maybe get some sleep. Come down when you are ready." Jared told you.

"Okay." Was all you said before you started to unlatch your suitcase and began removing items. Once Jared and Gen left you stopped unpacking to close the door to your temporary room and leaned against it for a few minutes, closing your eyes and taking a deep breath. They were nicer than you expected but you knew Lauren was also still downstairs, so you figured they were still acting.

Your eyes snap open as you remembered that. You could only imagine what she was telling them about you that they didn't already know from Kyle or Ms. Shaw if they contacted her.

At that moment an idea popped into your head seeing as they left you alone.

You carefully opened the door not knowing if it would creek or not, it didn't which you figured would be useful information later and retraced your steps back to the top of the stairs.

As expected when you peered down the winding staircase to see the three of them standing in the entryway talking.

"Is she okay?" Jared asked.

"She's tired from waking up earlier than she used to and the flight, I'm sure she bounce back by tonight if not tomorrow."

"She so skeptical of us."

Lauren sighed nodding her head, "Most foster kids are a little shy and unsure of their new family when they first arrive. Just be yourselves and you guys should be just fine."

Jared and Gen both nodded their heads in response.

"Well, I need to get the rental car back to the airport and catch my flight back. Best of luck and you have the office's number if have any questions, right?"

"Yes." Said Gen.

Jared opened the door for her, and you decided to sneak back to your room before you could be spotted. You expected a much worse conversation and were surprised unbothered they all were to your detachment. They were concerned yes, but they weren't angry or upset as you thought they would be.

It didn't take you long to finish unpacking seeing as you didn't bring that much. You put the suitcase away in the closet and as you turned around you saw movement outside the window. Moving closer to the window you saw Jared outside with the kids playing. He was running, or more like walking fast away from the kids as they tired to catch him. You suspected Gen wasn't too far away either.

They looked like a perfect happy family one you felt out of place in, and you knew that feeling wasn't going to go away.

You knew they probably wanted you to come down and join them, but you didn't want to intrude on their happiness, that and you were beyond tired, so you decide to try and get some sleep.

****

When you woke hours later the nap left you disoriented and out of it and being in the unfamiliar room didn't help. It took you a few minutes to remember where you were and once you did it did not fill you with comfort. Here you were trapped in an unfamiliar house with strangers for a whole month.

You wanted to stay in your room, to hide away as long as you could but the grumbling in your stomach forced you to get up.

You made your way down the stairs and wandered around the bottom floor lost in the huge house, having not gotten the full tour yet. Thankfully the sound of one of the kid's laughter helped to guide you to the dinning room.

When you made it to the doorway you lurk there for a moment watching the family. Jared had some sauce dripping down his chin which the kids were laughing at. You were tempted to retreat back to your room, it wouldn't be the first time you went hungry, but you were noticed before you could sneak away.

"Hi!" One of the boys shouted, you remembered the kids' names, but you weren't sure which one was Thomas and which was Sheppard.

Jared turned his head quickly toward your direction and then quickly wiped the sauce away with a napkin. "Y/N glad your awake, we were just thinking about coming up to wake you, we didn't want you to miss dinner. How did you sleep?"

"Good."

"Well seeing as you had an early breakfast and no lunch, I'm sure you're hungry. We're having tacos, come help yourself." Gen said motioning to a nearby chair.

You were silent as you did so and sat down in the empty chair next between the two boys. Gen prepared your plate by pointing at various dishes and you nodded your head when you wanted them.

You ate quietly while the kids resumed their conversation from before you entered the room and Jared and Gen listened attentively to their children but kept glancing over at you.

Kyle's words were playing in the back of your head when you went to your first home, "Be friendly and talk to them. The sooner you opened up to them the sooner you will stop feeling like a foreigner."

Now that you were older you knew that wasn't true, but you figured you should at least try to be civil. "You have a nice home." You mumbled all of the sudden.

"Thank you!" Gen said smiling at you. "Jared and I worked hard to match our styles and interests to build our dream home we wanted to raise our kids in."

"It's nice."

"You know the offer still stands if you want to do some designing of your own." Jared said.

As far as you were concerned this conversation had already been dealt with and you didn't feel like repeating it, so you went back to eating your dinner.

You heard Jared sighed and Gen was quick to change the topic. "So what do you like to do Y/N?"

You shrugged, "Not much."

"There's got to be something you like to do. Sports, music, art?"

"I watch tv sometimes."

"Oh, that's cool. What do you like to watch?"

"Whatever's on."

"Mommy, can we go play?" The oldest boy asked.

"In a few minutes Tom, we're spending time with Y/N right now." Jared answered for her.

You took a deep breath willing yourself to speak up, "Actually Mr. Padalecki I was hoping the three of us could have that talk now."

Jared looked shocked but nodded his head, "Yeah sure." He said almost eagerly. You weren't sure what kinda talk he was imagining but the one you were thinking of was nothing to be excited about.

The kids took off to do their own thing and you pushed your plate away despite still being hungry your appetite was now gone. You kinda wanted them to start and just lay on their demands on you but they were both waiting for you to start the conversation when you were ready.

"I know you probably have rules and expectations, but I want to start with mine." They both nodded their heads telling you to go on. You took another deep breath and tried to calm the nerves in your stomach. You regret eating now before having this talk because you felt like you might vomit at any moment. "Okay so, I know you're probably not going to like some of the things I say but please hear me out, and then maybe we could work something out." You said optimistically even though you knew it would never happen.

"Y/N, whatever you have to say go ahead and say it we won't be mad. I promise." Jared said urging you to stop beating around the fence.

You closed your eyes and took a moment to take a few deep breaths before going on. "So I know this is your home," You said emphasizing the word, "And I will respect that all I ask is a few things. Firstly the room I sleep in, I know it's yours and you're only letting me use it for the month but please let me have that as my own space." You could tell by their faces they didn't like what you said but you didn't give them a chance to cut in. You began speaking faster thinking you wouldn't get out everything you wanted to. "I just need somewhere I can go to think and not feel trapped. I need to be alone in a space I feel safe in and if you keep invading it, it won't be. If you need me while I'm in the room please knock. Um...Secondly I don't know how it works in your house but at my last placement, we had a schedule for who got control of the tv. My day was Tuesdays at seven and all I asked it that I get the one day for a couple hours and you guys can have it every other time."

"Is that all?" Gen said in a gentle voice, not wanting to interrupt you before you got everything off of your chest.

"No..... I.. Uh.. Look I don't know why you're doing this, but you guys do your thing I will do mine and will make it through the end of this month and go our separate ways." You finished and steading yourself before they raged at you.

You watched nervously as Jared and Gen exchange glances and seemed to have a mental conversation.

"Wow, uh, okay. That's a lot to take in at once." Jared said also taking a few breaths. "Okay, so we need to make some things clear." Here we go you thought trying to prepare yourself for whatever was about to happen. "So the room is not some renter room for you to borrow, it's your room." You couldn't help the scoff that escaped your lips.

"Y/N you asked us to wait for you to finish and we did now you need to hear us out." Gen said in a firmer tone than she had used towards you before, yet it still was not as stern as you expected. She used a tone that was still gentle but yet indicated she was serious.

"It's your room Y/N and we would be happy to respect the privacy of your room. I know this is probably overwhelming a new house, a new family, and all that but we want you to know you are safe here, I know it's probably hard to believe right now but this is your home too. And I understand the need for a place for just yourself... I've got my own," He cleared his throat going silent all of the sudden, "I understand the need for a place you can claim as your own where you know you will be safe in those four walls. We will never hurt you Y/N, but I get that your head needs the confirmation that you're safe, so we will do our best to help keep it that way for you. As for the tv you can, most of the time, have the tv whenever you want. I don't know what your old home was like, but we have more than one tv. There's one in the living room, one in the day room, and one in our bedroom. If a tv is available feel free to use it at any time, except the one in our bedroom that's kinda our space so unless we say otherwise try to use one of the downstairs tv's." Seeing how that might have sounded he quickly added, "But don't let the fact that it's our room stop you from coming to us if you need us."

"There will be times when you won't get control over the tv, like if we were to have friends over and the kids want to watch something you aren't interested in on the other tv, but for the most part you can have free reign of the tv." Gen added.

"Lastly we want to make it clear Y/N this is your home. We chose to welcome you inro our family. We want you here. This isn't just some act Y/N."

You sat there in silence. You figured they were waiting for you to respond but you had nothing else to say, you didn't believe a word they were saying.

"Look I hate to do this because I feel we will ruin whatever trust we just built but I think it's better if you know this now then you finding out later."

"We know what you probably think of us Y/N." Gen said, "But rest assured you are not some charity case to us. We are doing this willing not looking to get anything out of this or obtain a better reputation."

You sat back crossing your arms waiting for the shoe to drop.

"Do you know who we are?"

"Mr. and Mrs. Padalecki."

Yes, but did you look us up online?" Jared asked.

"We don't have access to the internet." You said bluntly.

"I see. Well Gen and I are both actors and very well known to the public."

You knew it! You thought they were using you and they were but instead of showing you off to their snobby rich friends, they were doing it for the whole world. They were right, you no longer believed a word that came out of their mouths. "I want to go home."

"Y/N let's talk about this."

"NO! I want to go home!" You shouted standing up abruptly.

"Honey you are home." Gen said.

You screamed frustrated and ran out of the dining room to go hide away in your room.

You slammed the door as hard as you could, but it did little to soothe the anger boiling in your veins. So, you march to the bed picking up the pillows and threw them across the room as hard as you could, and the sheets followed soon after. You screamed out again.

You weren't sure why you were so angry. You knew when you left the house this morning that you were not going to be welcomed here and that you only staying here till the end of the year. But after hearing all your fears confirmed it was just too much for you.  

It was the day after Thanksgiving and all of us kids staying at Ms. Shaw house were sitting in the back room, designated as a room for the kids to play and watch tv so that the adults could have the main room. There was only one tv and only a handful of things to actually do so all six of us were currently gathered around the couch and floor watching Jessie and Caleb play Mario kart on the old Wii system.

The holiday itself was a joke. Typically on Thanksgiving, one would eat enormous amounts of turkey, mashed potatoes, stuffing and so much more to the point everyone needed to rest for a while to recover from the large amounts of food they had eaten only to do it again later with desserts. That was not the case for you. Ms. Shaw was by no means a woman who loved to cook. Her food was not bad, but it was nothing special either. She'd rather choose simple meals to serve everyone rather than spend hours in the kitchen cooking a high-quality meal. So for Thanksgiving the seven of you had to share a small rotisserie chicken, scalloped potatoes, and mixed vegetables. There was no overeating until you felt bloated it was just another meal and everyone left to do their own things afterwards.

Jessie yelled in excitement after she nailed Caleb with a red shell right before the finishing line on the last lap causing her to win the game. "Alright who up next?" Caleb said offering the remote up. Mrs. Shaw got tired of all the arguing over who got to play on the game console so she got rid of all the single player games and demand everyone had to take turns, to play the winner so to speak, or else she would remove it the game system completely. Seeing as there wasn't much else to do the threat was enough to make everyone cooperate.

As custom though the oldest get first call to play and they typically hogged the system for hours passing the controllers amongst themselves before they would hand it off to one of the younger kids, but they didn't complain knowing if they did no one would get to play. They would rather watch the older kids play in hopes that maybe after several rounds they would get a chance than go back to staring at the walls.

"Y/N?" Caleb asked gesturing the controller in your direction. Being 15 you were the next oldest however you learned a while ago to keep to yourself. If you were to play it would just cause unwanted attention. Unlike many group homes there were no bullies who picked on and beat on the other kids but you never really felt welcome in the group and when you're playing all attention is on you, everyone being a backseat driver telling you what to do, when to do, and yelling at you when you made your own choices, it took all of the fun out of playing. You would rather spend your time working on your word search book.

You shook your head and Caleb handed the controller off to the first kid who jumped up. However, before the next game could start Ms. Shaw came in and stepped in front of you all blocking the tv and then turning it off, "Dining room, now."

Everyone let out a sigh and began putting things away and making their way to the dining room for the meeting that was about to come. Typically family meetings weren't a great time. In the past, you've all been yelled at for not helping out enough around the house, not sharing the game system, or for Ms. Shaw to tell you there would be some changes around the house due to lack of state funding. It was rare for her to share good news in these meetings, so no one was eager for this meeting.

Ms. Shaw was leaning against a cabinet when you walked in and once everyone was seated at the table you waited for the lecture to start. You expected her to sigh and then begin with her speech that was intended to make you feel guilty for how you've been treating and neglecting her and her house despite everything she has given and done for you all.  Except she never did. She stayed where she was, leaning against the cabinet. As you sat there in awkward silence as the room began to fill with tension, everyone including yourself began to think over the last few weeks, replaying everything that you could've done to cause this.

After five minutes or so the doorbell rang and without saying a word Ms. Shaw pushed herself off the cabinet and left the room to get the door.

"Who did what?" Caleb sneered but kept his voice in a whisper.

Everyone looked around the table at each other wondering the same question. You would have figured if anyone did something it would have been Caleb, he was the one to cause mischief around the house.

When Ms. Shaw returned, she was not alone which did not make anyone feel any better when they saw who accompanied her. Kyle Winters, the case worker who placed you all here with Ms. Shaw. He was kind and friendly to all the kids he worked but no one was happy to see him. He typically only showed up when things went wrong, when a kid was being removed from the home and relocated.

The thing is if a child were to be relocated it would be a private conversation between the child, Ms. Shaw, and Kyle, it wouldn't be a public thing in front of everyone which made your heart race faster in your chest.

The only explanation your mind could think of was that Ms. Shaw was no longer interested in running a group home meaning everyone needed to be relocated. You weren't too attached to the other kids but you had been living with most of them for four years now, it would be unlikely you would all be placed in the same home and the thought of having to start all over in a new home upset you.

"Good afternoon, everyone," Kyle said in a cheery voice as he entered the room.

But he was not greeted to the same tone from any of you instead he was welcomed by a collection of mumbled hellos.

Ms. Shaw took a seat on the side while Kyle stood at the front of the table. "Come on, cheer up it's the most wonderful time of the year!" He said enthusiastically but everyone sat in silence. "Alright I hear what you're saying, or rather not saying. Get on with it, am I right?" He said with a chuckle. "I can tell by your faces you're all worried why I'm here but I promise you I come with exciting news."

"For a while now my coworkers and I have been working on a new program, it's taken us a while to get it up and running but I'm happy to say we've finally got it finalized for this Christmas. We really want to give you guys the chance to celebrate Christmas as you use to before your lives got turned upside down, a Christmas that state funding cannot provide for." He said sparring a sad glance to Ms. Shaw. His intention was not to criticize her and others for not taking the children in their care to get a Christmas tree or buy them Christmas gifts and other holiday festive activities. He was grateful to have people like her to even take these children into their homes.

"So what does that mean?" Caleb said in an annoyed tone. He like everyone else was used to the state making promise that they couldn't keep.

"It means we been working hard for years to find some really nice people who want to help you guys and who want to give you all the Christmas you deserve."

"Whoopee." Caleb said in a sarcastic voice, "A few donors giving a few hundred dollars which will allow us to get a new pair of pants. Yay." He said with a roll of his eyes. Jessie gave him a hard nudge with her elbow in response. As the oldest, she had a responsibility to keep the others in line.

"It's alright, I understand the skepticism. But these people are more than donors they are willing to take you guys in and allow you to celebrate Christmas with their families."

"WHAT!" You all shouted. Your fears rang true, you were going to be relocated into some stranger's home.

Kyle held up his hands in defense, "Guys, guys relax this is a good thing. As I said we've been working hard and we've found a family that we think will be right for each of you."

"So what's going to happen?" Jessie asked trying to be a calm voice of reason for the younger kids.

"You guys will have two days to pack what you would like to take to your temporary homes. You guys are going to move into your new homes on November 29th, that way you guys have a chance to settle in a little bit, and then you will live with your assigned family until the end of the month. On January 1st you will move back in here."

Everyone sat in silence taking in the new information and wondering what the next month could mean for all of you.

"I will warn your right now." He said using his stern tone that he hated to use. "We have worked hard to get this program up and running and these families have given a lot to welcome you into their homes for the holidays. Meaning I will not tolerate any of your usual shenanigans and attitudes that you usually play when you get put in a new home. Be yourselves, but don't be rude and cruel just because you feel like it. These families have graciously welcomed you into their homes to give you guys a happy holidays and I don't want you guys to ruin it because you're mad about being moved."

After he finished explaining the program, he pulled you all into the office one by one to talk about your new home assignment.

You were nervous when you walked in and anxiously fiddled with your hands. Kyle shuffled the files around before pulling out yours and opening it. "Alright Y/N we have placed you in a home in Texas."

"Texas?" You repeated in a shocked tone. That was so far away from where you lived now, in Minnesota. You were now even more nervous about having to leave the state and fly on an airplane for the first time.

Kyle hummed in acknowledgement, "Um-hm. You will be staying with the Padalecki Family; Jared and Gen and their three children, Thomas, Sheppard, and Odette. You will be picked up here at 6:30 am on the 29th and you will fly down to Texas with a case worker and be taken to your new home. Pack only what you think you will need for the next month; we won't be mailing out any items you leave behind. Anything you don't bring will be right here where you left it. Do you have any questions?

You shook your head simply not knowing what to ask.

"Alrighty then, I hope you have a wonderful Christmas and make lots of fun holiday memories." He said closing your file. You moved to stand up before he spoke again. "Oh, and Y/N I really hope you like them, I really think they will be good for you. And I know you put up your walls when you're around new people, but give them a chance will you. I promise you they will be good to you.