Her Unforeseen Destiny

Kind Gestures

"Where the hell have you been?" Emmeline shut the front door behind her and turned to face her foster mum, or foster jailer as she preferred to call her. It was 10:05pm and her curfew was at 10pm. She thought it was absolutely ridiculous that, at almost 18, she still had to be home by 10pm. Nevertheless, Alice WAS the one who kept a roof over her head, so Emmeline usually tried to keep to the prison - sorry, home - schedule. 

"Jason was late to arrive, so I had to stay at work until he got there," Emmeline tried to look contrite, even though she wasn't sorry in the slightest. She was already annoyed at having to wait an extra half an hour at work thanks to Jason's tardiness and she wasn't in the mood for one of Alice's lengthy lectures. 

"Well, I hope you ate already. Also, there are dishes in the sink that need washing." And with that, Alice turned on her heel and disappeared into the living room, slamming the door behind her. Alice had never been the nicest foster parent, but ever since her husband had left her for his secretary (so cliché, Emmeline thought) she was a Class-A b-i-t-c-h. A few other foster kids had passed through Alice's foster home in the past few years, but since Alice hated to actually take care of children and much preferred the children to take care of her, none had stayed. Aside from Emmeline.

Emmeline wished she could stand up to Alice. Most of the other kids had mostly just misbehaved sufficiently for Alice to have them sent back to wherever they had come from. 

As she trudged up the stairs to her small bedroom, Emmeline thought again about what the future might hold for her. She had finished college in May and had spent almost every day since picking up shifts at the convenience store where she had worked since she turned 16. She knew Alice hadn't kept any of the money supposedly destined for her. It had definitely gone on pricy bottles of whisky, or maybe the new handbag Alice had come home with a few weeks ago. 

She smiled when she thought about the next month. August, her birthday month. She would finally be able to leave this prison and could move into a new flat. She had discussed it already with her personal advisor from the local council. She would get a leaving home grant, plus they had ensured that the first three months of her rent was covered. The flat wasn't fancy, but it was ideal for her as she found her feet as an independent young woman out in the big, wide world. 

She kicked her shoes off at the foot of her bed and fell onto her back on the crappy IKEA mattress. She was pretty sure it was the cheapest possible mattress they even stocked. When she had helped in the back office at work recently, she did some cheeky web surfing while Mr Isaacs was busy dealing with a customer. She had loaded the homepage and was scrolling through the 'inspiration' section on the IKEA website. They had such cute stuff! She loved some of the unique lamps, especially the ones where you could see the filament, like some kind of vintage lamp. Just as she was wondering which armchair she could possibly afford in the next year, she had heard a voice behind her. 

"Looking forward to your new apartment, huh?" She had spun around guiltily, but Mr Isaacs just looked amused. 

"I'm so sorry, I just don't have a computer for myself yet and I just wanted to have a quick look-" she had started rambling, but he raised a hand to quiet her.

"Emmeline, it's fine," he had chuckled. "If you need an advance on your wages when you move in, just let me know."

Mr Isaacs was a strict man, but a kind man. Emmeline imagined that he would make an imposing but good father. He was Jewish but had strayed from his family's strict Orthodox views. They hadn't been all too pleased when he married a shiksa, or a non-Jewish woman. They were even less pleased when he took over a failing convenience store but didn't make it kosher. His wife had died a few months before Emmeline had started working at the shop, and it was her absence that had pushed Mr Isaacs into hiring new staff. 

"Thank you!" Emmeline had exclaimed at his offer of advancing her wages if she needed the help. Nevertheless, she quickly closed the tab and got back to helping organise the inventory spreadsheets that were in dire need of an overhaul. Mr Isaacs was excellent at organisation, except when it came to anything involving computers. The moment it was on a screen, it was almost as if he forgot how numbers even worked. 

"Wait a moment." She had looked up and Mr Isaacs was searching in a cupboard for something. "Aha! For you."

Mr Isaacs had never been a man of many words, and these few words were accompanied by laptop computer being briskly handed to her. At her look of confusion, he had clarified himself. "It's a laptop."

Emmeline had bitten her lip to stop herself from laughing. Yes, she was aware that it was a laptop. But why?

"For you." He had repeated himself and pushed the laptop into her hands. 

"Th-thank you," she had stammered, staring at the laptop now in her hands. 

"It was Elaine's. I don't know why I keep it. It's yours now." He had stated, before turning and walking back out of the office and into the store. Emmeline had remained sitting, her mouth slightly agape in shock. She had never been given something 'just because'. Alice didn't even bother doing birthday presents, unless you counted the year she had given Emmeline new cleaning supplies on her 15th birthday and told her that the attic needed a spring clean. Or whatever a spring clean was called when you did it in August, anyway.

Emmeline smiled as she thought of the gesture. She had hidden the laptop in her old school binders, knowing that would be one place Alice wouldn't bother looking. She couldn't use the internet on the laptop at home, since she had no other reason to ask Alice for the WiFi password. So far, she mostly just used it to keep track of what she might need after she turned 18. After all, she DID have a new home to shop for.