Corpse Flower

VIII. Cookies and Milk

Sophia’s POV:

Got you, you f*****g witch.

Witches everywhere are offended.

The caretaker wants to sell me off. A few years ago, I wouldn’t even think that a nice elder lady who bakes cookies in her free time would carelessly sell-off orphans.

But, she does.

The caretaker gets a good percentage from the government whenever a child gets adopted. The wealthier the family. The more money she earns.

I frown, “No one wants me.”

The caretaker tuck a strand of hair behind my ear, “Don’t say that. Listen to me, Sophia.”

If I listened to her, I would’ve been sold off to a pedophile. A few months after I arrived here, I was chosen by a family. The family seems good in the front, but the husband was a pedophile, and the wife didn’t care.

I got lucky that day because I broke my leg, trying to jump off the roof. I wanted to test out whether everything is real or I’m in a coma in some hospital.

Either way, I end up in the hospital.

Twice a year or so, the couple comes to the orphanage and picks out a young female. I don’t want to tote any horns, but the body I occupied is adorable.

If I didn’t have a woman’s mentality, I would’ve fallen for their tricks and went with them.

The workers in the orphanage turned a blind eye because they donate a large sum of money.

For the orphanage, there will always be children without families.

“This family is great. The earl lost his daughter, and he saw your picture.” I want to vomit. “He said you remind him of his late daughter.”

“But what if his wife doesn’t like me?”

She smiles, “His wives-” plural “will surely adore you.”

“Wives? He has more than one?”

“Yes. He is a good husband.” More like a horny man.

“But, doesn’t that mean he has other children?” The caretaker flinches. “What if those other kids don’t like me? I’m uneducated and-” I look down for dramatic effect, “no one at the orphanage likes me.”

The caretaker held me between her bosom. I want to slap her. I really do, but I can’t. If she kicks me out of the orphanage, I wouldn’t be able to survive. “Listen to me, Sophia. You’re a beautiful girl with a bright future.” She made me look at her. “And you won’t find your wonderful future here.” Sweet words. “This family will be able to support you...push you to your full potential.”

I pout.

“How about this? You show up tomorrow, and if you don’t like that family, you can continue to stay here. Go to school. Play with Anastasia. Okay?” It’s a threat. Meet them or find yourself in the street.

I nod, “Okay.” I played with my fingers, “I hope they would like me.”

She pets my head, “They will.” The caretaker pinches my cheek, “Now off to bed with you. I’ll send someone to give you cookies and milk later.” Cookies and milk. The earl must have offered a lot of money for me.

I clapped, “Yay! Thank you!” I hugged her and rushed out of the room. If I stayed any longer, I would be in court for murder.

“Congratulations.” I stopped in the middle of the hallway when I saw the leader of the orphanage. Enid Delacruz.

Enid is the eyes and ears of the caretaker. I smile, “For what?” I rarely talk to Enid. Sometimes, we would make eye contact, but we would avoid crossing paths most of the time.

“A family is coming to see you.”

I giggled, “Silly Enid. They’re coming for all the children.”

Enid lifts a brow before his facial features change. He smiles and pats my head. “Yes. They are coming for everyone.” He leans in closer, “But it doesn’t mean you shouldn’t try.” His smile only grew colder. “After all, you want to get adopted, right?”

What a jerk. I nod, “Of course, Enid! I want a nice family like Anastasia! Mom and dad, who loves me and gives me a nice warm bath!” I need to continue to pretend to be stupid. Smart children in the orphanage get sent away faster than the dense one.

“Great. Go to Lilith’s room. She has a nice dress for you to borrow.” This was planned ahead of time. Most likely, the caretaker planned this out for weeks.

“What’s wrong with my clothes?” I tugged out the clean shirt. “Anastasia’s mom washed it!”

“Yes, it is a nice shirt. But, you want to be presentable for your potential new family.” He wants me to wear Lilith’s dress so I’ll stand out more. It’s a mediocre plan he used in the past.

“But Lilith only has one dress. I don’t want to take that away from her. I will wear my own clothes.”

I can see a vein popping from his temple.

Before he could say another word, I intervened. “Lilith is a nice and pretty girl.”

I don’t know her personally since we manage to keep out of each other’s tracks. But, a lot of the kids at the orphanage seem to like her.

“I want her to have a chance to be adopted too.” The vein only surfaces more. Enid likes Lilith, so the last thing he would want is for her to get adopted by a questionable family. Good or bad family, Enid would no longer see Lilith.

Enid grabbed me by the wrist. Hard. “Lilith would understand. She knows how much you want a family.”

Instead of responding, I cried and dropped to my knees. “Ow! Enid! That hurt! It hurt!”

“You-”

“What are you two doing?” The caretaker shouted. He’s stupid to allow his temper to get the best of him. We’re not that far from the caretaker’s office, and the wall isn’t thick.

I continued to cry.

Enid released my wrist, “She fell, and I was trying to help her stand up.”

I rushed towards the caretaker and held her leg.

“What happened?” She asks me.

I clung onto her dress before looking at Enid, who shook his head. He glared at me, forcing me to understand his intention. “I fell, and it hurts.”

The caretaker exhales softly before she goes on her knees to check me. She doesn’t want damaged products. “Can you shake your legs for me?”

I nodded and shook my leg, one at a time.

She wipes off my fake tears, “You’re okay.” The caretaker combs out my hair with her fingers, “Look at you. You’re a mess. Go take a warm bath after this.”

I shook my head, “I already bathe at Anastasia. Anastasia’s mom told me, if I bathe too much, I’ll get sick. I don’t want to get sick before meeting the nice people tomorrow.”

The caretaker smiled. Silly woman. She thinks she got me wrapped around her finger. If she thinks hard enough, she would realize how odd it is that I haven’t gotten adopted yet.

“If you’re dirty, then no one would want you,” Enid said.

“Shush!” The caretaker replies.

“It’s okay!” I’m a petty person. I’m going to get revenge. It’s either someone else or me. And of course, I choose me. “Enid said I could borrow Lilith’s pretty dress!”

“He said what?” It seems like Lilith is also a candidate for the earl.

“Yes!” I scream before Enid can make an excuse. “I want to wear my clothes, but-” I look down, “it’s not nice.”

The caretaker exhales softly, “Your clothes are plenty nice.” She forced self-confidence down my throat. “I just need you to be in the front and be your cheery self like usual tomorrow.” Cheery children have a better chance of being adopted than a dulled one.

I smile, “Yes!” I turned towards Enid. “Can you please tell Lilith I don’t need the dress? My clothes are okay!” I gave him two thumbs up, instead of waiting for anyone to respond. I skipped down the hallway without a care in the world. In the corner, I stopped my movement.

“What are you trying to do?” The caretaker’s voice completely changed.

“I was trying to help Sophia.”

“Helping Sophia or preventing Lilith from getting adopted?” Silence. A little boy can’t go against a grown adult. “We had a deal. You watch the children for me. Make sure no one escapes, and I’ll take care of both of you. But, cross any line, and I’ll send that girl away.”

The caretaker isn’t fond of Lilith since she is quite rebellious. Other orphans like her because she has the nerve to talk back to the workers. She would often snap whenever she notices something is unfair. Little does she know; Enid is the one who had been covering her actions. Without him, she would’ve been sold to a brothel or some old man.

I turned around and made my way towards my bedroom. Once I reached inside, I flopped on one of the four bunk beds. “This f*****g sucks.”

Now, I have to come up with a plan.

I cover my eyes with my arms and exhale deeply. “Why is this happening to me?” I curl the thin blanket around my tiny body.

“Sophia?” One of my bunk partners called for me. I peek out from the blanket. “The caretaker told me to bring you some cookies and milk.” She sets the dessert down. I sat upward and ate delicious food. If I’m getting sold, I’ll leave with style—a full stomach.

In the corner of my eyes, my roommate was staring at me. I swallow the cookie, “What’s wrong?”

She played with her nails, “You’re lucky, Sophia. I wish the caretaker would give me cookies and milk.” Little does she know it’s a potential goodbye meal.

I hand her a cookie, “Here you go! I’ll share it!” Playing the role of an innocent little girl is difficult. Most of my migraines come from my fake act.

Immediately, she ate the cookie.

“The caretaker,” I started. “She said I’d get to eat like this every day when I get adopted.”

My roommate looked up from the ground, “Hm?” Only selected children get to know when a potential family is coming so they can get ready.

“Yes! She said as long as I’m cheerful and I wear a pretty dress. I’ll get adopted!” I know what I’m doing is cruel.

“Pretty dress? You don’t have any dress.” The only dress I had was the one I wore on the day I got transported here. They took it from me and sold it.

“Enid said I could borrow Lilith’s dress.”

Her face turned twisted. It makes sense. From her perspective, I’m someone who receives special treatment.

“But, I told him no. My clothes are clean.” I pat my shirt. “Anastasia’s mom cleaned it for me.”

Her face turned even uglier, “How lucky.”

I smack my hands together, “I forgot to tell Lilith that I don’t need the dress.” I got off of the bed.

Her eyes widened, “No!” She shouted. “I’ll tell her! You sit here and enjoy the cookies and milk.”

“Are you sure? I don’t want to bother you.”

She shook her head, “Not at all!”

When the door closes, my smile drops. “Sorry,” I said to no one. “I’m sorry.”