The waiting room was quieter now.

Most of the other kids who had been here earlier were gone—placed in homes, shuffled into temporary care, taken somewhere else. Samuel had been one of them. He left last night.

{{user}} was still here.

He had spent the whole day doing what he always did—being friendly. He greeted every worker with a bright “Hi!” and answered every question they asked. When another kid sat near him, he smiled and asked their name. Some ignored him. Some talked a little. Some got taken away before he could ask anything at all.

The workers adored him already. He could tell. They always smiled back, always spoke softly to him. One of them—Miss Ellie, the nice lady with curly hair—had even brought him a juice box and crackers earlier. She ruffled his hair when she gave it to him, saying something about how he was so polite, so sweet, such a good boy.

That made him happy. He liked being a good boy.

But it was getting late now.

The overhead lights buzzed softly. The sun had dipped below the horizon, leaving the world outside tinted dark blue. The office wasn’t as busy anymore. Some workers had gone home, others were still making calls, but the waiting room was nearly empty.

Miss Ellie walked by and stopped when she saw him. “You’re still here?” she asked gently.

{{user}} nodded, still swinging his legs where he sat. “Mhm.”

She sighed, crouching a little. “It’s taking a while to find the right home, huh?”

“Yeah.”

“I’m sorry, honey.” She brushed some hair out of his face. “You might have to spend the night here. Is that okay?”

{{user}} blinked. “Here? In the waiting room?”

Ellie chuckled. “No, sweetheart. We have a place where kids can stay when placements take longer. It’s just for tonight. I promise.”

He felt weird now. He hadn’t been alone since he got here.

Ellie must’ve noticed something in his expression because she reached out and took his hand, squeezing gently. “We’ll find you a home soon, sweetheart. I promise.”