“So we wouldn’t adopt right away?” AJ asked, slightly confused.

“Technically, no. It is just procedure though. You will be fostering her for as long as you want. Then, when your mom knows for sure whether she wants to adopt or not, she will fill out the correct paperwork. Then a review board will look at it, which could take as long as a month minimum,” Miss Haselton explained as if it were extremely easy to understand.

“Ohhh,” AJ just nodded his head, pretending to understand.

Denise chuckled softly. “Don’t worry about it, it will be easier that way.”

AJ shot her a mock glare. Miss Haselton chuckled as well. “ Now, I have a slightly unusual question to ask. Do you mind that she is Jewish?”

This shocked Denise. “Of course not! Why would you ask?”

“Well, in the past, there were some families who were willing to adopt Felicia. They thought she was a sweet girl, but when they found out she was Jewish, they suddenly found an interest in the younger girls,” Miss Haselton shook her head at the memories.

Suddenly the door flew open and Felicia rushed inside.

“Sorry it took so long, I wanted to drop my stuff off in my room,” she said, and took a seat between Denise and Miss Haselton.

“That’s okay sweetie,” Miss Haselton said. Felicia was, by far, her favorite charge. When Felicia first arrived and she heard her story, she felt so bad for her. Not seeing her family for a month and then dieing unexpectedly must have been hard on a 10-year old. Felicia had a great personality and was the ‘perfect’ audience for the staff. She always listened to what they had to say, and even laughed at their bad jokes. She wanted the best for Felicia, and hoped Felicia wanted the best as well. “What do you think about Alex?”

“He’s cool. Except for being clueless about the snow though,” Felicia joked, getting a laugh out of everyone in the room, including AJ.

“What about Denise?”

“Well, I didn’t get much of a chance to talk to her, but if she’s like Alexander, then I’m sure she’s cool as well.”

Denise elbowed AJ slightly. “See, someone thinks I’m cool. I can be a cool mom.”

“Mooooom!” AJ groaned. Felicia laughed. She wished she had a relationship like this with her mom.

“Well then, I have excellent news for you. Denise would like to foster you,” Miss Haselton said, looking at Felicia expectantly, waiting for some type of response.

Felicia’s eyes went wide. She was so excited! But then she frowned. She leaned over and whispered something to Miss Haselton.

Miss Haselton chuckled. “Yes, I told them and they don’t mind one bit.”

Felicia was so excited inside, she almost couldn’t keep her energy inside. Instead of bouncing around the room or yelling, she hugged Miss Haselton, and then Denise. “Thank you,” she whispered.

Denise returned the hug. “Your welcome sweetie.”

Felicia sat back in her seat when AJ cleared his throat. ”What about me?” he asked. ”Don’t I get any love?”

Felicia giggled and went over to hug him. She returned to her seat. “So what happens now?” she asked. She was right, this was the best day of her life.

Miss Haselton was elated that Felicia still wanted to have a family, unlike the other girls who gave up. “Now, you pack. Since you will be going down to Florida, your case will be turned over to a social worker in the Orlando area. We will mail your belongings to meet you.”

Felicia was even more excited now. She remembered that AJ said he was from Florida, but the realization hit that she would be living down there as well. But she didn’t care; there were too many bad memories in Ohio. “Can Alexander help me pack?” She asked, still using his full name. She didn’t feel comfortable calling him Alex yet, but didn’t know why.

“I don’t see why not. I need to fill out some paper work with Mrs. McLean, and I’m sure he would end up wandering around anyways,” Miss Haselton said, trying not to laugh.

“What is it, pick on AJ day?” AJ exclaimed as he threw his hands up in the air.

Felicia giggled. “Follow me,” she said, pulling AJ along. Her dream was coming true. Not just her dream of getting out of the orphanage, but the dream from last night. Now she knew why Denise and AJ looked familiar. They were the colored people from her dream.