Go Dog Go Café Tuesday Prompt: Finding Home

~Response to Tuesday Writing Prompt at GodogGo café~

Today’s prompt: Write a piece of prose around the phrase: “I never want that again”.

greyscale photography of woman wearing long sleeved top — Photo by Kat Jayne on Pexels.com

Pearl’s whole life was one disaster after another.
She was orphaned at age six then spent twelve years in a foster care home. Today, on this glorious day, was her 18th birthday. She was SUPER ready to spread her wings. Her bitter life during all those years was over, and today, was her liberation day! As she packed her bags to set off to freedom, she looked into her bedroom mirror.

“I never want that again. I don’t have anyone and don’t need anyone.”

Pearl would begin her search for a REAL home, right away. Her worst days were behind her now. As she finished up, she recalled what she would never be missing…

When she was nine she’d fallen off of her bike, on this very date, breaking her collar bone. Her foster sister, Joy, had pushed her too hard on that royal blue birthday bike with white tassels and a silver horn. Her foster parents, Karen and Gene, didn’t believe her and always took Joy’s side! She refused to ever ride it again, of course.

“For sure!” she mumbled.

At Christmas, she had the yucky green stocking and hated that Joy (three years younger) got to put the angel on the tree top, EVERY YEAR! Santa never gave her what she wanted either. She always put her wish for a “real” home, first.

“Stupid kid dreams. Ugh!”

Gene, nag, nag, nagged her about her friends and if she’d done her homework.
He constantly shouted at her to stop kicking Joy under the dinner table!
Karen was even pushier! She MADE her take dancing lessons and insisted upon holding her hand when she was sick. Not only that, she incessantly corrected her grammar because she said ‘it was important not to appear ignorant.’

“Geez… power hungry do-gooders!”

Pearl waltzed out the front door, suitcase in hand, and walked down the concrete steps.
“I learned to roller skate launching from those.” She grinned a little.
As she struggled to unlatched the sticky front gate, she remembered it saving her from the “mean girls” who had chased her home daily, in eighth grade, during an entire marking period. When Karen found out, she went straight to the principal. It stopped there after.
“Good ole gate.” She patted it as it squeaked closed.

Everything was about to change. The sun was shining and the birds were singing. As she reached the corner, Pearl snuck a last glance at the house. She was going to miss the place, anyway. She couldn’t help but notice Karen wiping her eyes partially hidden in the drapes. “Karen was never any good at spying on me.” she sighed.

It was a Monday when Pearl set off to become a woman and fled her past to find her place in the world.
By Tuesday, she’d found a home!
She sat down lightly at the dinner table. That life long heavy chip on her shoulder was gone. No one had asked her to explain her escape.
It was absolutely warm and welcoming.

A squeal came out of nowhere!

“Pearl, please stop kicking Joy under the table!”

—————————————————————————————