Adopted by the Italian Mafia

P R O L O G U E

--- Raven's POV ---

--- Raven's Age: 7 ---

--- 7 April 2015, 6.22 a.m. ---

--- 3rd floor hallway ---

--- LIVINGSTONE Orphanage, Shrewsbury, New Jersey, USA --- 

I let out a small yelp when one of the orphanage bullies, Charlotte, slapped me. I could feel the bruise forming on my cheek as I fell to the ground from the impact. I touched my bruised cheek softly as I don't want to feel more pain from it. 

"God, you are so weak. No wonder your parents left you here. They don't want a weak freak like you!" Charlotte said in a high-pitched voice, almost making me to cringe. 

After a few punches and kicks, Charlotte finally left me along with bruises and a bit of blood. I let out a tired sigh and stood up ever so slowly and carefully. I lean against the wall for support as my legs felt almost numb from the kicking Charlotte gave me. I hate that girl so much. She has been here since she was 9 and now she is 15. She bullies people for 'fun' and she didn't realize how hurt other people are from her words. She bullies everyone accept her so-called friends and other people who are older than her. Not even Grace, the caretaker of this orphanage, know about the bullied going on as she is very busy this past few years. When is she ever not busy? 

This orphanage is afforded by the government but it is only for the food and drinks. The orphanage needs money for remodeling and other equipment needed like cleaning equipment, playing equipment, etc. I have been trying to get some money by getting jobs and so far, I got a job being as a cleaner in the library and a waitress as I did a great job at it. I work in the library for at least 3-4 hours and work as a waitress for 2-3 hours. I would usually go home by 8 p.m.. The curfew is at 9.15 p.m., so I am still safe when I get hope by that time. An hour work as a waitress is already $16 and an hour work as a cleaner in the library is $20 because the library is thrice or twice bigger than the Great Hall from Harry Potter. The library I am talking about is Monmouth County Library in Eastern Branch, Shrewsbury. The address is 1001 NJ-35, Shrewsbury, NJ 07702. The orphanage is only a few miles away from the library. 

The diner I work at is called Americana Diner. The address is 1160 NJ-35, Shrewsbury, NJ 07702, United States. It is very near from the library. Just jog for 5 minutes from the library and I'll arrive to the Americana Diner. Speaking of work, I think I better go and start preparing now. I don't want to be late for work. I have been working there for a month and they told me that it is okay if I was late. They know that I am from the orphanage and they let me work there despite me being 7 years old only. 

I yawned as I cleaned myself and cover the bruises with a little bit of waterproof makeup. I soon went to grab my waitress uniform that I always brought back to the orphanage. Since I am basically the smallest worker in the diner, I got the smallest size of clothes that still look quiet big for me. Since it is quiet big for me, the chef and other workers told me that I could just wear anything. So, today I decided to just be more comfortable. I ended up picking a knee-length skirt, black puff sleeve top and black ballet flats. A piece of advice, don't wear anything white when you are going or working at a diner. I wanted to use all black but that would make me look like as if I am going to a funeral. 

I took my name pin that says 'Raven. S. Delilah, waitress' and a $5 bill. I then fixed my hair into a braid bun. My cinnamon brown hair looked very neat and doesn't look out of place. That is good because when I am serving food, my hair wouldn't fly into it. Even though my hair is as long as my middle back and is wavy, I am able to tame it easily. After I am all done, I went out of my room and went to the front table to inform Grace that I am going to work. I went down the flight of stairs and went to the front table.