Amelia's story (24 page)

I was ecstatic; I could not believe something good was actually happening to me. My Social Worker
had
told me that
Mrs
.
Price had often inquired about my well
-
being during my time in care
,
as she was very fond of me
.
A
nd that’s why they came up with the idea of approaching her about my coming to live with them. Apparently
,
Mrs
.
Price was over
joyed and agreed straight way.
S
he had two boys
and had always wanted a girl.
So my immediate future was set.
I knew where I would be living, and I felt better knowing that my mother had moved on to yet another council estate a couple of years previous.
Spring sneaked up behind me before I knew it,
and
I had of
ficially left school, if you could
call it th
at. I had a job lined up
in a
fashion house
a few miles away
,
working from Monday to Friday, 9
:00 a.m. to 4:
30
p.m.
with thirty minutes for lunch. Th
e company was called Kiss Kiss F
ashions and owned by a Jamaican businessman who was a lovely first boss to have. I was taken each day to my job in th
e signature blue-and-
white van sported by all the Bryn Tyn child
ren’s homes including Westbrook.
I was of an age where this embarrassed me
and
I did not want people to know
I was in a children’s home now.
A
nd this big van with Westbrook
C
hildren’s
H
ome sprawled across it did not help matters one single iota.
My first day at Kiss Kiss was fantastic; I was to start from the bottom
and work my way up
and was taken to the cutting room. However
,
I was reminded by the chief cutter that this was actually one of the most impo
rtant jobs of all.
I watched him draw lines with his white chalk on the beautiful cloth set ou
t on a great huge cutting table.
I watched closely as he cut the cloth with a cutting machine and the more delicate edges with special cutting scissors. During my first week I noticed they were making these beautiful white dresses for a department store and I fell in love with them, not able to stop myself from staring at them hanging up on the rails once they were finished.

One day I took one off the rails and h
eld it up against me.
I looked in the tall mirror in front of the mannequins, swishing and twirling around
,
totally oblivious to the fact that I was bein
g observed by the company owner.
H
e looked at me an
d said it was a very pretty dress.
I had to agree and apologized
for taking liberties.
H
e turned to me with an endearing smile on his face a
nd asked me if I would like one.
I nearly fell to the floor in shock. He said
,
“I think you’re at least a size eight” and picked a dress off the rack
and handed it to me. Then off he went back into his office and wished me a good evening.

I could not believe it, this was the most amazing piece of clothing I had ever owned and I loved it. I stood outside waiting for the van to collect me, swaying from side to side holding my beautiful dress.
While I was waiting a young boy about my age rode past on his bike,
and
as he passed
me he slowed down and smiled.
H
e was so handsome
I couldn’t help but smile back, and
I felt my heart skip several beats
.
H
e
then slowly
back pe
ddled toward
me and asked me my name
.

“My name is Amelia,”
I replied
shyly
.

He smiled at me a
nd introduced himself as Damian.
H
e was adorable and I like
d him immediately.
I had never much thought about boys befor
e really, so this feeling
was a surprise to me! I had noticed boys
,
of course, but had never paid much attention to th
em. This time was so different;
I was just hoping he woul
d ride away now before the blue-and-
white van turned up to take me back to Westbrook Hall.
I was not granted such good luck and no sooner had the thought passed through my mind
than
the blue and white
van turned up on cue as always.
W
hy it could not have been just a few minutes later on this one occasion? Surprisingly
,
Damian seemed undeterred and waited until I had climbed into the van and disappeared off into the distance. I stared out of the back window until he was gone from
my
si
ght
. On my return to Westbrook Hall I ran straight into the cottage and gushed about Damian to my friend,
and
she reminded me that I would probably never see him again.
The weekend had arrived and I was to go on my first visit to the Norwegian
’s house.
I was very excited and spent ages getting ready and doing my hair. I had recently started to apply full face makeup bought using my first weekly wages from Kiss Kiss. My bag was packed and I was al
l
ready to spend the weekend with my new family. I was dropped off by a member of staff
,
who informed me that I would be picked up at 5
:00 p.m.
on Sunday evening. Mrs
.
Price was waiting for me at the end of the path and put her arms around me
and gave me a very tight hug.
I was not used to
this
at all, but it felt so warm and lovely.

She walked me into the house and
everyone was there to greet me.
Mrs
.
Price had baked a Norwegian cake especially for me as she remembered how much I loved them all those years ago. I was shown to my room
,
which had been decorated
for my arrival the week before.
I
t was lovely,
with
brand new floral bedding with matching curtains, sli
ding wardrobes for my clothes (
not that I had many
)
, and an old wo
oden dressing table with a mirror.
I
t was perfect, the most beautiful room I had ever seen
,
and it was all mine.
The weekend was pretty perfect.
I felt as though things were finally changing for the better. Mr
.
Price was very pleasant; he sat in front of the TV
,
mostly
,
drinking one or two beers to relax. On the Saturday morning
,
Mrs
.
P
rice took me into town to buy some new clothes
for me.
I told her I had no money and she smiled at me
, and
then went on to say that I did not need any money as she was treating me. I was so happy and didn’t want the weekend to end. On the Saturday night we all sat together watching
Rocky
.

The following morning Mr
.
Price headed off to his engineering company to do some paperwork while Mrs
.
Price prepared and
cooked a sumptuous Sunday lunch.
I helped peel all the vegetables, while her boys were at football training. So this was what
having a proper family was like.
Although I was very happy
,
I was also overcome with sadness at the life I never h
ad. All the things I had missed—
shopping with your parents, cooking with your mother, everyone gathering around the table at meal times dis
cussing the events of their day.
S
uch simple
,
normal
,
every day things, but to me they had been so far
out of my reach all of my life, and now my childhood was gone I would never have it back.
 

Mr
.
Price returned at lunchtime all covered in oil, c
ursing about one of his workers.
H
e went upstairs to clean up, and then the two boys came in through the back door, teasing each other as they ran up the stairs. Eventually we all sat down to dinner and Mrs
.
Price always said grace before anyone could eat. We all tucked into the delightful feast set
out
before us and no one spoke until we had all finished. Mrs
.
Price looked up and asked for everyone’s attention
.
“Amelia is now one of the family
,
and I want her to be treated as such,”
she announced
, and everyone
clapped their hands
,
followed by hugs and kisses.

To say this was surreal to me would be an understatement; I was so overwhelmed by love and kindness I was not sure how to deal with it. I felt in very unfamiliar territory, nice as it was but it was too much to
o
soon. I never imagined I would feel this way after so much genuine love was given to me; I simply was not used to it. I needed to be sure that my new family was here to stay, that they were for keeps before I could give over to my emotions, as I knew I could not handle any more rejection.
I was picked up and returned to Westbrook that very Sunday evening. I lay quietly in my room trying to imagine what my life would be like once I left Westbrook and the care system once and for all. My destiny would be in my hand
s for the first time in my life.
I had so many
plans buzzing around in my head.
I wanted to go to night school and complete all of my O-Levels,
and
I wanted to go to Business College following receipt of my exam results. This all seemed like a pipe dream, but
it was my dream nevertheless.
I needed to take those exams so I could take myself
forward in the right direction. I would
not be a statistic;
I would not slip under the radar.
I want
ed
to be somebody to prove to everyone
no matter how hard your life could be you could
still be somebody. This was my dream, all I
thought about most of the time:
I will be somebody on
e day,
when my destiny is in my own hands, that is when my life will really start.
My friend came into the bedroom to ask about my weekend with the Norwegian
s
,
and
I didn’t stop talking for at least
thirty
minutes! Once I came up for air, she smiled and gave me a big hug before suddenly offering some advice
;
“Be careful
,
Amelia, don’t allow yo
urself
to get hurt any more.” My friend’s words stayed
with me;
they were powerful words, and she was absolutely right
. . .
I would not allow myself to be hurt anymore.

The following morning over breakfast we were all gathered together in the main house, all the girls
and boys sat around in a circle.
W
e were informed that Westbrook
Hall
was going to have a football match with Telford
U
nited
F
ootball
C
lub r
eserves, for the sixteen years and under.
It would be a fun day, and there would also be lots of other activities for
the girls to get involved with.
T
he football team had kindly volunteered their time following a request from Westbrook Hall.
We were all very excited about this and could not
wait for the following Saturday.
A
ll the girls talked about was what they would wear on the big day, and all the boys talked about for a week was how they were going to kick ass on the football field in Westbrook Hall, where the match would take place. Before the football match arrived
,
I ha
d a visit from my Social Worker.
S
he wanted to update me
on my visit with the Norwegians.
She went on to say that she had had a meeting with Mr
.
and Mrs
.
P
ric
e and the weekend was a success.
T
hey had totally fallen in love with me
,
and Mrs
.
P
rice had gone as far as to say I was like the daughter she
’d never had. E
ven her sons were happy about me becoming a new addition to the family.
I was so happy, I felt reborn.
I felt like this was all a dream, that I would wake up any minute and it would not be real, but it was real and this was happening to me. I felt unworthy of all this happiness that had been bestowed upon me. Remembering my friend’s honest words, I was also very w
e
ary and all too aware of how good things could be torn away from you in an instant. I was also informed that by the summer of that year I would be officially released from the state care system and handed over to the caring hands of Mr
.
and Mrs
. Price.
T
his all seemed too good to be true
,
and I would not allow myself to believe it until it finally happened. I was asked again if I was happy with the decision to go and live with the Prices in the summer
,
and I advised my Social Worker that I was extremely happy about it and could not wait for the summer to arrive.