The Girl Most Likely To ... - Part 17
by Barbara Lynn Terry

Chapter 1 - An impromptu group therapy session.

"Rach," Sharon started the group. "We have all been where you are now. Most of us were just emotional wrecks when we came here. Rebellious, cruel, didn't care about anything. We all come from good families that love us, but they couldn't handle our rebellion. So they sent us here. It was here that we found a purpose. We actually, without anyone telling us we had to, started helping each other. We listened when another girl talked, and we did things together.

"I came here during the last year that Evie was here. She was the one who mainly taught us that we are sisters, and that we should be grateful we have each other. That was when I looked at the house parents for the first time, and noticed that they were at a loss to help us. Then Evie told us that if we showed them love, like we wanted our parents to love us, then we wouldn't have such a difficult time living here.

"Sis, I want you to know, that no matter how much you cry, or how much emotion you show, we will be there for you. We need each other in this place, because we are all we have. It was just an institution to us when we got here, now it is our home. We have loving house parents with a house father that treats us like daughters. Even though they are state employees, we have adopted them as our surrogate parents. Since then, these house parents have shown us how much love is in them to give to us. We appreciate everything they do for us.

"Like for instance, just a bit ago, when we came in from building our snowman and having a wonderful time tossing snowballs, mom made us hot cocoa. She didn't have to, but she did, because she knew we would be cold, and would want something to warm us up. That is what a mother does for her children, and that is why we call her mom. She does things for us that our mothers would do, if we were home. But it is like I said, we are home, and the experiences we have here will last us forever. We have made a lot of wonderful friends here, and that is another thing too. When we all depend on each other, we are siblings, and so, we are sisters. Rach, you are our sister, too."

"Thank you, Sharon. I didn't know what to expect when I was on my way here. I thought I was going to be called nasty names, and told to do things I didn't want to do. But as soon as I got out of the car, and you came over by us, you got me inside quickly before I froze. I was actually thinking, that I might be able to freeze to death than be locked away in an institution. But, I have only been here a few days, and I have been treated as an equal, a sister and a daughter by the house parents. I have never had that before coming here."

"Rach, we know those feelings very well," Melanie added. "My own mother, as soon as I got here, decided not to come and visit with me. I know I need help, and I never thought in a gazillion years I would ever get that help here. I always heard institutions were places they put you just because your parents didn't want you any more. But then Sharon showed me a new lane in the road of life, so I have been traveling that lane ever since. It is hard to realize that problems exist, and we are the last ones to admit that we have some of those problems. But after being here awhile, I not only found that I had some of those problems, but admitted to my sisters that I have them and need help in dealing with them.

"Sis, they took me by the hand, literally, and sat me down, and that was our very first impromptu group session. Since then, we have had many impromptu group sessions, and we find that each time, we have dealt with another problem. Now, I don't want to sound redundant, sis, but when you came here, you came here as a punishment from the court, because you were an out of control bully. But look at you now. When Sharon had doubts inside herself, it was you that suggested retail therapy in town. It was you who suggested we get Darla and Tommy back together. It was you that suggested we can do that by having a different approach from someone who has known nothing but disappointment and darkness her whole life. That person is you, sis, and we listened when you came up with the idea, and we are all for it."

"Thanks guys, I really appreciate everything you do for me."

"Did you just hear what you said, sis?" Sharon asked.

"I said, I really appreciate everything you do for me."

"You said, 'thanks guys'. That is how we address a group of girls if we have an epiphany, or want them to help us with something. See, boys don't only call each other guys, we say that to each other in groups, at times. You have been a girl for more than a few days. Haven't you, sis?"

"I have always wanted to be a girl, ever since I was little, but was afraid to say or do anything about it because of my dad. He's an ex-Marine, and he is so gung ho as they say. A person with a penis is a boy or a man, and a person with a vagina is a girl or a woman. There is no in between in his thinking."

"Well, where he is going, that thinking is going to be dashed and smashed."

"Mel, where he is going, he might just be somebody's sweetheart." The girls all giggled.

"That can be more truth than you know, sis."

"Thanks, Sharon."

"Anyway, sis, you are our sister, and we will be there for you, no matter what. All for one and one for all" The girls all placed their hands on top of each other's in a sisterly pledge.

Chapter 2 - Renée returns.

After the group session broke up, Rachel had a wonderful idea. They should go in to town right after dinner. Curfew wasn't until nine o'clock, and that would give them at least three and a half hours to look around. It was another hour until dinner, and the cooking squad was already in the kitchen getting everything ready for making the dinner. The menu said pork chops, apple sauce, green beans, mashed potatoes and apple crumb cake for dessert. The apple crumb cake was made the night before by Connie Stevenson, who is chief cook and bottle washer. As that group was making the rest of the dinner, Naomi and Renée just happened to come in.

"Naomi!" Sharon shrieked. "I'm so glad you came back," she said, hugging Naomi."

"My goodness, girl, what is wrong?"

"Oh Naomi, I am just so mixed up right now. Before Rachel came here, I thought I had a pretty good grip on things. Rachel showed me just how much of a grip I didn't have. I was afraid you weren't coming back."

"It's all right now, Sharon. Girls, I came back to tell you that I have been accepted as a deputy sheriff for the Pine Meadows County Sheriff's department. They called me and left the message on my voice mail. Monday I start here. I have also found a house big enough for not only myself, but for Renée, her mom, Sandi and her mom, and Rachel's mom. We will be spending the weekend moving up here. I didn't tell you before because I wanted it to be a surprise, but since they called me and told me to report for duty on Monday, I felt I could tell you now.

"When I was here last time, I was in Pine Meadows county for this very reason. I was at the state police barracks to leave Trooper Jim O'Donnell a message, when he called in to say he needed someone to take a minor's statement at this house. All the troopers were out because they had a semi jackknifed on the highway, and they were all there doing traffic control. So the state police sent me, instead. Now I am going to be a sworn arm of the law here in Pine Meadows County, so you had better toe the line."

Everybody giggled as did Naomi. They all knew she was joking. "So, girls, the house I bought is just down the road about a half a mile from here. It has a nice piece of property to it, too."

"Naomi," Sharon started to ask. "May we come over and help you unpack and get settled in? I'm sure we can get Connie to make something delicious in the way of a welcome to the neighborhood gift."

"Sharon, I would like that. Also, you are all being told now, that if you need anything, to talk, to go in to town, to go ice skating, or whatever, you just dial N for Naomi."

Naomi felt like she was a pro-football player from all the hugs she got at one time. They just got up and sort of tackled her, giving her hugs of appreciation.

"Naomi, after dinner, we wanted to go in to town for a couple of hours. Would you and Renée like to come along?"

"I would like that. In fact, I will take you in to town in my SUV. How many are going to go?"

"There will be seven of us," Sharon answered Naomi.

"There will be eight," Connie said from the dining room. "I want to go in town, too."

With all of the excitement, no one saw Rachel and Renée go in the living room and sit down. Rachel had tears in her eyes, and Renée was also starting to mist a little, too.

"Sis, you are my BFF, and I should have been there for you, instead of abusing you the way I did. I am so sorry, and that is from deep inside my soul. Can you ever be my BFF, too."

"Rach, I have forgiven you for what you have done to me, when you were somebody else. But, ever since you have been here, you have shown everybody, myself included, just how much of a mature girl you are. I am now, and forever your BFF, girlfriend. Let's pinky swear so that this promise will never be broken."

They intertwined their left little fingers together. The reason it was the left little fingers, is because the left side is closest to the heart. Rachel and Renée hugged in a tight embrace.

All the while, the girls and Naomi were listening, and watching the two bond.

"Well, I must say, that every day you are here, Rach, you grow more and more," Naomi said, with a beaming smile. "I am very proud to call you both my little sisters."

"Naomi?"

"Yes, Rach."

"There is a couple that live here in Pine Meadows county, and right now they aren't speaking to each other. The girls said they have tried to get them back together, but they weren't successful. I said, maybe it needs a new approach from someone who has known only disappointment and darkness. The girl's name is Darla Cranston, and she lives in town and the boy is Tommy Barker. He lives down the road about two miles. So I figured it this way. Since I have known only disappointment and lived in darkness for far too long, I thought maybe I could talk to Darla, and get them back together. I don't care how many tries it takes, either. Everybody here knows those two belong together, and that is what I want to try and do."

"You thought this up all by yourself, sis?"

"Yes. I think it is important to be with somebody who cares for you. Tommy cares a lot for Darla, from what I am told, and I haven't talked to Darla, yet."

"Well, I am all for getting the right people back together. It is just a matter of getting one or both to talk to you about what made them break up in the first place."

"That is just it, Naomi", Melanie added. "Tommy came to a dance a while back, and when Darla found out about it, she got mad and broke up with Tommy on the spot. They haven't spoken a word to each other in two years."

"What was their relationship like before the break up?"

"They were always together, whenever possible. The night Tommy came to our dance, Darla was with her grandmother. What she was doing, I don't know, but Tommy came to the dance, and Darla was so infuriated that she gave Tommy a lecture right in the cafe in town. Tommy never said a word, all he did was shrug and left. He told us later that if that is how she feels, then there was nothing he could do."

"Or would do. Decent boys don't usually argue in public places. Being that I will be working here now, I guess I will meet these two when they are in town. Tommy isn't a reckless boy. Is he?"

"No, Naomi", Renée answered. "He is a decent boy with manners. When he comes to our dances he behaves himself very well. I met him on the way to town yesterday, and he was very nice. He even gave Melanie, Sharon and I a ride in to town and stayed with us, then brought us back to the house."

"Well, then I guess he is a decent boy. So let me see, now, there will eight girls going in to town tonight, and with Renée that makes nine and ten with me. That is the limit my SUV will hold."

Madelline came in the living room and told the girls to get washed up for dinner. Naomi and Renée were also told to get washed up.

"I think I will come after dinner is over." Everybody giggled.

Chapter 3 - In town.

Everybody was talking during dinner, and it sounded like a hive of bees buzzing instead of teenage girls chatting. Connie Stevenson asked Naomi if she had to be back in Forest City, tonight.

"No, Connie. My position there is empty right now. I have a new position training rookie deputies here in Pine Meadows county. I will also be doing double duty as a patrol officer too, if I am needed. This is an occupational hazard for us in law enforcement. This isn't just a job for me. I actually hope I am making a difference."

"We see on Cops how the officers treat people. Is that how it is really done?"

"What they do on Cops, Sheryl, is by a script like they do in the movies. Cops is actually a reality show. They came to Forest City and wanted us to participate, but we all voted it down, when we were asked if we wanted to. If I treated a prisoner the way they do on Cops, Sheryl, my case would be thrown out of court on a defense motion to dismiss for extracting a confession without the suspect's attorney present, or coaxing a suspect in to a confession when his or her attorney says the interview is over. Even if I used excessive force on a suspect, that wasn't really dangerous, my case would get thrown out. It is called appealable error in law. If you look at my back window on my SUV you will see a sticker that says ... Deputy - Pine Meadows County Sheriff - Active. That means, even when I am off active duty, I am still on duty, and can enforce the law."

"Naomi, did you study law?"

"Yes, if my position as a deputy was ever in jeopardy, I could still practice law as an attorney. But I wouldn't want to be a prosecutor, though. They don't seem to have any respect for law, the constitution, or the courts. They definitely have no respect for a defendant, because they don't investigate. They leave that up to the defendant's attorney. Prosecutors are by theory, not only supposed to prosecute the guilty, but they are also supposed to exonerate the innocent. They prosecute the guilty, and in their eyes, everybody charged with a crime is guilty. That is a miscarriage of justice, if you ask me."

"Maybe that is why Justice wears a blindfold and carries tipped scales."

"Yes, Sheryl, that is exactly what that means."

"What I don't understand is, why are a lot of cops really brutal? I mean, they ask you a question, and when you answer them, they tell you to tell them the truth, now. Why is that?"

"I'm not really sure. I know when I ask a suspect a question and he or she answers it, I ask them if they are telling the truth. If they tell me yes, I let it drop. I really have no idea why a lot of people wearing the badge have a temper problem."

"Maybe they should be here so they can see that they have a problem and how to deal with it."

"Anne, that is a very good idea, but unfortunately, police don't get sentenced to institutions unless they have committed a felony."

"I have been hearing that there are police being arrested for this felony and that felony. There was a county officer in Georgia that killed a woman, and he denied it even after he was found guilty by the jury."

Anne Hesch, thirteen years old, was still basically a newbie to Pine Meadows. She had come to Pine Meadows two weeks before Rachel. She wasn't your every day rebel without a cause, but she did admit she had problems, and this was a good place to deal with those problems. She was in the same boat as many of the girls. Anne was emotionally distressed, and she found that with her sisters, they knew where she was coming from, and that they were the help she needed to deal with her problems.

"Anne," Rachel added, "When I was taken to the security office at the mall, and then the detention center, I cussed every cop I had ever known, and the ones who took me to the detention center. Now I see that they were just doing their job. One was a little rough on me, because he pushed me in the elevator at the mall."

"How do you feel about that, now, Rach?" Naomi asked.

"Ashamed and hurt, because I hurt my BFF and when it was my turn to be hurt, I didn't like it. Naomi, why does it take coming to a place like this to see what we have done wrong?"

"Well, sister Rachel, you have always known it was wrong, but because of your father, you thought you were doing what he wanted you to do. Now you see just how wrong he was, and you were. Since coming here, you have been on an upscale attitude. You know the night I left here when I bought the turtle doves, I was thinking to myself how you and Renée had bonded then remember saying out loud to myself that my little sister is doing just fine. Your attitude here, sis, has been nothing but pure girl. I had my suspicions when I told you to get dressed in those detention clothes. You didn't bat an eyelash and when we ran through how to sit and talk in front of the judge, you didn't argue or resist. Then when you went back in the courtroom, you sat like a young lady instead of a boy dressed like a girl. Sister Rachel, I want you to understand that that was one of the reasons I made our deal. Because I knew you were hiding in there somewhere, and it was just a matter of time before she came out.

"Not only am I proud to call you my little sister, but I was very happy when they told me to bring you here. Now I am here to stay and help you through your very trying times."

Rachel got up from the table and ran to Naomi. They hugged each other as both had tears in their eyes. Rachel is going to be just fine, now that her BFF Renée and Naomi are here to stay.