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Screw that I’ to be free

But I need a job, fast

I s the tiny aer “Look, I really need this job Please I’ll wait tables I’ll wash dishes I’ll do anything you want Just givehis arht now”

Oh sure Except for the NOW HIRING sign on theoutside Rage flares inside ive e? My tattoos? My brown skin? What the hell is wrong with er takes a step back, and I see a flash of fear cross his face He’s scared of er in my eyes, of the ink on ht I know I can take him, easy

And the worst part is, I want to

I’m jerked out of the moment when the woman at the other table raises her voice “This is not what I ordered”

The waitress looks at the plate and then back at the woer with coleslaw, right?”

“Yes, but this burger is cos? And my salad?”

“I’m sorry, what did you order?”

The woman huffs “I ordered a—”

The words pour out of er without mayo, with mustard, no tomatoes, Swiss cheese instead of cheddar, extra avocado and bacon, onion rings instead of fries, and an extra side of coleslaw Plus an order of the reen salad with no tomatoes, and a Diet Coke with no ice” I stop to take a breath, and then I add, “And he ordered the blue cheese burger with a Sprite”

Everyone’s staring at er, the waitress, and the couple at the table Even a few people across the restaurant Eyes wide,their brows I know these looks I’ve seen them before

My face burns, and I wish I could take back everything I said, redo the entire moment I spin around and head for the exit before they can say anything

A blast of heat and sunshine hits me as I step outside I wanted to show them I could do this job just as well—if not better—than they could But like a pendeja I let et the best of me and proved to everyone in there what a freak I aet this

The doorbell rings at 8:34 preen numbers on the clock, while Katie reads out loud fro It could be a saleshbor But I know better Sudden arrivals in a foster ho,” Katie says as she looks up froaze away fro to the ‘discoteca’ Keep reading”

We’re huddled next to a fliht because the bulb overhead is out and no one’s bothered to change it yet Not that there’s er than a closet with one dresser between them It’s obvious our fosterit with lavender walls and fluffy, pastel pillows, but a steady strea kids has worn the place down At least with the light out it’s harder to see the stains in the carpet, the fraying edges of the sheets, or the peeling paint around the sill Still, I’ve lived in worse places And I only have to survive this one for another twoway to go before she gets out I don’t knoill take care of her when I’one Not the Robertsons, that’s for dah as it is Not the other girls living here, who pick on Katie for being tiny and having hair so pale it’s al when she cas No one messed with her much after that

Katie’s kind and smart, and the system hasn’t worn her down yet I pray it never does, but who aets to us all in time