Not Strictly by Birth

“Vroom” their parent’s car drove into the drive way and into the garage.

“Guys, dad and mom are back and it looks like there is someone at the back of the car” screamed Dorothy, the last Hampshire child.

The rest of her siblings gathered by the window where Dorothy was and was wondering who would accompany there parents back from there getaway in Hawaii. Once there parents entered the front door, Dorothy ran down to give them a hug and saw a young lady of about her age. Dorothy was 10 years old and was a very stubborn little girl.

“Mom, dad, who is this?” she asked in a rather rude manner.

“Dora, where are you manners?” her mum yelled at her.

“I asked a simple question, mom” she said walking away.

There mother led their guest to the guest room and called together all the rest of the children to the living room. They were four children, the first was Michael, a 17 year old college student, the second, Stephanie who was 15, 13 year old Gerald then lastly Dorothy.

“Her name is Betsy” their father began.

“Long story cut short, on our way to Hawaii, we got a call that our friends were involved in an accident and it was there last wish for us to take care of their when they are gone” he concluded.

Stephanie being rather irritated interrupted by the story asked how that had anything to do with us or to do with her staying here.

“Steph, I and your mother don’t like the idea too but we were told to live with her for some time to know if we would like to adopt her or send her away to an orphanage”

“Send her off to an orphanage then” Gerald muttered.

“That’s rather inhuman of you to say about someone, Gerald” their mother reprimanded while coming down the stairs.

“She is going to stay here whether we all like it or not to at least realise if we would want to adopt her. Their mother pitched in.

“Mom, don’t you you think that it is a little too late for all these, we are already to established to have to have another member of the family pop in from nowhere” Michael finally said.

“I understand all your grievances but you are going to have to keep it to yourself but as of right now, you all have to go and and see and welcome her” they mother rounded off.

“we are definitely not doing that “ they chorused in unison as they left and went upstairs to their rooms.

Dorothy couldn’t keep up with having another sibling of her age, she was a very spoilt last child and definite didn’t want to share that anyone and definitely not Betsy. Her mother had talked to her telling her to look at it like having a twin sisters because Betsey was 10 years old too but Dorothy said that now that she is two that there attention would be divided and she wouldn’t want that so nothing will ever make her welcome Betsey as her sibling or a member of that Hampshire family. None of the kids were happy with the new development and Betsey could tell that they didn’t want her in there house so she always kept to her self and avoided coming in contact with any of them as not to make them angry.

The Hampshire children had to gang up against Betsey and make their parent's refuse to adopt Betsy so they certainly had to set her up and they knew exactly what to do. Firstly, Dorothy broke their mother's antique vase and said that it was Betsy that shoved and pushed her purposely because she refused Betsy to play with her dolls. Their mother didn't believe Dorothy that Betsey would do something like that to her and disciplined Dorothy for lieing to her. Dorothy went away and began to cry in front of the house. When their father came back, he noticed she wasn't alright and asked her what the problem is, she said that mother had chosen Betsey over her. This was certainly going to be a problem because Mr Hampshire never joked with his last daughter.

"Honey, Dorothy told me you punished her for something Betsey did" Mr Hampshire asked his wife later that night.

"It was definitely Dorothy that did that and am sure" Mrs Hampshire said while laying the bed for the night.

"So you would believe a total stranger to our daughter, I'm really disappointed, you can sleep on the bed alone" he said as he took a pillow and went downstairs.

Mrs Hampshire slumped to the bed speechless. Meanwhile, the Hampshire children were listening from a far distance and we're happy that their plan was working. By making their parent's quarrel over Betsey, they will definitely not want to keep her. That was one thing done, another they had to do was make sure Betsey didn't want to stay so they had to make a her stay a living hell for the meantime.

The other plans they had plotted were working and now their parent's weren't in good terms and this made their father detest the fact that it's a total stranger that us causing him and his wife to quarrel like this, they had been married for 20 years and noting if this manner had ever happened. Meanwhile, Betsey hated her stay in the Hampshire house and would prefer the worst orphanage to it because the Hampshire children had made the house so unbearable for her.

They had deprived her 8f food, television,playing and all other fun stuff, they even told her not to tell their parents anything, that she should just leave. Betsey spent most of her time crying in her room, she rarely even came out to play and the Hampshire children definitely didn't want to play with her rather they were frustrating her which hurt her the most.

Another of their pranks was the one in school. Betsey was a very bright student which pissed Dorothy off because they were in the same class and Dorothy wasn't that much if a bright student. One of the days when Dorothy had gotten enough of the praises tat was showered on Betsey, she told the entire class that Betsey wets the bed bed which was not true. Betsey refused to go to school again because of the embarrassment. When Mrs Hampshire confronted Dorothy, she denied everything. Mrs Hampshire still had to punish her because the report had came from school. Afterwards, Dorothy told her dad that she was innocent and her mother hit her.

Mr Hampshire couldn't keep up with all of the drama and decided to put Betsey in the orphanage immediately, he drove to the nearest orphanage and went to the head nun there and she discouraged him from doing that after she heard the story. She told him maybe his wife was right and that the children are being hostile to Betsey because they can't welcome into their family and instead of him taking his children's side he should try and talk to Betsey himself. He had calmed down and decided to do what the nun had told him to do.

The height of it was that they took her bed outside while she slept in it and the rain fell and drenched her, she stayed up through the night crying and weeping under the rain. The following morning,the children threatened to do worse if she mentioned anything to their parents that it would be better for her to keave6abd she felt the same way too. She told Mrs Hampshire that she would prefer the orphanage to here. Mrs Hampshire suspected her children must have been doing something 5o offend Betsey bad grounded all of them.

That same day they were grounded, there father came back early from work and wanted to take them all including Betsey to make her feel like part of the family shopping but there more refused telling him that they were grounded and are not supposed to have the pleasure to go shopping.

"This about Betsey right I'm taking her to the orphanage right now" he had lost it.

" What is wrong with you, honey" his wife asked, " why have you turned cruel alongside your children, this is a girl that was entrusted in our care and you are acting this way towards her"

" I'm very sorry if I have caused any problems but I think I have to go now, let me go and pack my things" Betsey who had been listening said from the top of the staircase as she went back to her room.

"Can you see what you all have done" Mrs Hampshire said pointing to her husband and her children. " Especially you, husband".

Mr Hampshire felt hurt and told his children that they have been being very terrible and that He has been stupid to take there their sides and not beli6all the had done, now you all are going to have to go and apologise to Betsey because I have decided to finalize her adoption into the family, he had told them to imagine themselves in her shoes and they started to feel bad and agreed to apologise he told them that someone must not be family strictly by Birth, that that is one thing he has come come to understand. He told them to try and welcome her, then they all went to her room and apologized to her sincerely and they had a family hug.

Few months later, the adoption was finalized and Betsey became a Hampshire and the whole family started to enjoy her her stay, finally Dorothy accepted her as her twin.