Jacob sat in the hard plastic chair in the stuffy DHS office hearing the sound of cheap plastic fans swirling with the prayers of the office workers for a waft of fresh air to blow their way. He had been there since the building opened in the morning now the middle of the afternoon in the hottest part of the day. His phone sat long dead in his bag with what few belongings he had to his name. By the end of the day he would be placed in another new foster home with new foster parents and a repeat of what he had always dealt with. Uneasy looks, nice enough words, but everything ending up the same after a few weeks.
He had long since given up hope for finding people who would want to keep him, people who actually cared for him not just for the check the state sends. It was always something to weird, too much of a loner, to "unique" aka to gay, or to wounded and jaded. Bitter by years of rejection, he knew better than to get comfortable in a new place. He barely remembered most of their names. Mostly just a blur of somewhat nice people, new families that would swear to love him and be a forever home, but sadly in all 16 years of his life, no takers.
Jake shifted in his chair trying to bring life back to his sore left cheek, hoping his right would last long enough to let the other rest. It was half past 3 and the only other people he had seen today was the other kid sitting on the opposite end of the room tucked into the other corner occasionally mumbling into his backpack like he was talking someone or something stowed in it. He thought maybe it was other kid trying to smuggle a beloved house hold pet with them through the foster system. He would see that time to time, a kid trying to hold on to the last member of their broken family. Sad really, they all end the same, eventually discovered by the social workers then carried off to the humane society with teary goodbyes sorrows. Breaks your heart every time but they have a hard enough time placing a kid in foster care much less a kid dragging along a pet.
Suddenly startled by someone clearing right next to him he jumped realizing while he was lost in thought someone seemed to materialize next to him. He looked up and down at the impressably tailored man standing next to him. He had immaculately styled hair with the tips dyed light pur3-piecestylish light pink pin stripe 3-piece suit, a silver pocket watch and chain tucked carefully into his matching suit vest, black leather boots adorned with silver, pink tinted clerk glasses hanging on the tip of his nose, and piercing yet beautiful bright purple eyes and just a touch of make-up adorning his seamless face, this was an impeccably beautiful man.
He was fully lost in the man's charms so adult, so manicured, so obviously. . . . . Talking to him! Jake came to his senses realizing in sounded like he was saying his name "Stevens." "Yes sir, right here," he said hastily, embarrassed he had been blindsided by the man's appearance and overall beauty. "Come this way and bring your belongings." Jake hurriedly grabbed his pack and followed sighing at the prospects of a new foster home. When they arrived at the social workers office Jake was surprised to see it was an actual office in the back of the build, not a grubby little cubicle in the middle of the bull pen amidst the crying children and crying mothers trying to get their children back. His office was furnished nicely with a large oak desk and a set of comfy leather chairs set up at his desk and around a swanky wood table that looked like it belonged in a tarot card shop instead of an office at DHS. The overall theme seemed like a page out of some Tolkien style high wizard, not a finely tailored social worker about to sentence him to another uncaring foster home. "I'm Mr. Twitch," he said reaching out his hand to shake Jakes. "Nice to meet you," Jake said blushingly, marveling how soft and smooth yet harder than steel his hand was. Overall Mr. Twitch was chiseled like a Greek god, buff and fit, but not bulky, somehow as lithe as a panther yet stronger than a lion. And those eyes were like to shining pools of swirling purple hypnotizing him every time he would stare into them just a little too long.
Mr. Twitch cleared his throat noticing Jake was starting to wander. "I wanted to talk to you before we send you out. We don't get many of these placing and I just wanted to make sure you were still ok with going to the halfway house." "The halfway house?" Jake said. "Yes, did no one tell you exactly what was going on and where you would be going? Honestly that doesn't surprise me with some of the dead heads we have working here. Well we will be sending you to a halfway house for the next 2 years until you age out of the foster system. You have to option to stay there and keep renting the room if you wish, many do for different reasons but more often than not they like the company and learn to function well together." "You mean I'm going to a place with other guys like a dorm or something?" "Exactly except it's a brown stone downtown and you'll share an apartment with 7 other young gentlemen." This sounded too good to be true, Jake couldn't believe what he was hearing . His own room in a group apartment with 7 other guys. "OK so what's catch, really strict rules, constant checks and oversight, overbearing chaperones who steal your stuff, just tell me straight I've been through to many places I just want to hear what the problem is ahead of time." "No catch," said Mr. Twitch, "there is one resident advisor in one of the rooms, he's around your age, but you'll hardly see him, he mostly just sleeps and stays in his room unless you need him." "I'm sorry this just sounds too good to be true, what am I expected to do or what work will I be given?" "None, you will be there to get acclimated with dealing with different types of people and prepare to deal with the rest of the world as you enter adulthood. We know you've been bouncing around from place to place, but this will help you get settled and when you come to the end of 2 years if you want to stay you can if not just take what you've leaned and the stability this will give to move forward at start your life as an adult in the world." "Did I win some kind of prize or something or are you sure I'm the one you want to send there?" "Yes, were very sure" as Mr. Twitch picks up a monocle from his desk and looks at Jake through it. "All we need is for you to sign these papers that will act as your lease for the room and your set." Mr. Twitch slides a stack of papers toward Jake and points to a line and says "Sign here." Jake hurriedly sign the papers before anyone could change their minds, he didn't know if everything was on the up and up, but it sounded amazing and he wanted to jump at the chance before a mistake was caught. "And that's it, I'll escort you to the car out back and it'll take you directly to your new place to live, I hope you have a good time there and settle in nicely. I've taken the liberty to have one of your roommates Jeremy waiting outside for you he'll help you get in and show you the ropes." Mr. Twitch led Jake through the building out the back where a care was waiting to take him to his new life. A smile crept across his face as he got into the car. A feeling of happiness bloomed in his chest and Jake couldn't wait to start the rest of his life.