Another One Into The System

Hannah sat at the county social services, office waiting to be taken to her new foster home.  Her older sister Heather and her had been together in a different home since their mother had been put in jail for drug trafficking.  Unfortunately, Heather had been caught with drugs and taken to Juvenile Hall and the really nice foster family, where the both had their own rooms, had a strict policy when it came to drugs around the other kids in the house.  So Hannah would have to go to a different family, and probably a different school again.

Even with her father overdosing when she was just 10 and then her mother slowly getting more and more hooked on drugs.  Now just shy of sixteen, Hannah was still an excellent student, with grades at the top of her class.  She watched as her mother started to do whatever it took to keep her habit fed.  She knew that her mother had been going out in the evenings dressed in the trashiest outfits she owned, but didn’t want to think of what she was doing to make money.  Hannah also knew that Heather had started to get high on a regular basis, but still managed to go to school every day.  Through all of this Hannah never faltered, instead pouring all of her efforts into her school work, determined that it was what would help her to break away from the cycle that destroyed her family.

So, as she sat and waited for the woman from the county to finish the paperwork, and the new foster family to pick her up, Hannah did what she always would, put her mind into her work.  Hannah was a gifted student, already taking advanced placement classes, her school guidance councilor was amazed at her ability to overcome her family life and succeed in her work.  She would often tell Hannah that if she maintained her grades that tons of colleges would offer her generous scholarships to her.

An hour, or so later, She sees the woman from the county talking with another woman who has another girl, maybe 10 years old, with her.  Hannah can tell by the repeated looks her way, that she is the subject of their discussion.  A few minutes later the young girl walks over to Hannah, and Hannah can tell she had been crying…”Hi I’m Jenny.  I guess we both have to go with her.”  Hannah instantly tried to make the girl at ease…”You’ll be okay.  I’ll be your friend.”  Jenny sat down next to Hannah, smiling for the first time in days.

The two women walked towards the kids, with only the woman from the county having a smile on her face while the other woman looked less than happy.  “Hannah, I see you’ve already met Jenny.  This is your new foster parent Agnes O’Malley.  She already has 4 other girls in her home, but has agreed to take you as well.”  Mrs O’Malley wasn’t overly warm and inviting…”I came for one of you and I leaving with two.  The county seems to think I have an endless supply of room.”  Hannah begins to gather her school books into her book bag and as Mrs O’Malley gets sight of what she has, immediately sets the girl on edge…”You can just leave those here.  I have all the books you’ll need for school.”  Hannah’s love of learning meant she couldn’t just leave them behind, instead continuing to put them in her bag.  Mrs O’Malley was getting impatient now and began walking down the hall towards the door holding onto Jenny’s hand…”Come on, get moving we have stops to make.”  Hannah helped Jenny get seat belted into the van before they headed out, still unsure of where they were going to.

Mrs O’Malley stayed silent most of the ride, but as she pulled in to a parking lot, she asked Hannah…”You’re 15 1/2 aren’t you?”  Hannah looked confused as she looked at where they were.  It was a restaurant just outside of town.  While Hannah and Jenny wondered if they were going to get lunch here, Mrs O’Malley set them straight.  Looking at Hannah..”15 1/2 is old enough to work, and my sister is short on workers, so you’re going to work the full 30 hours that the law allows you to every week.”  Hannah began to wonder how she will fit all the work in and still get all her homework done…”Mrs O’Malley what about my schoolwork.”  Mrs O’Malley quickly ended that discussion…”The only reason I agreed to take you was because you were old enough to work.  Don’t worry about your homework because I don’t ever give any.” Hannah immediately wondered what Mrs O’Malley meant…”Are you a school teacher?”  Pushing Hannah thru the door, into the restaurant, Mrs O’Malley made it clear to her…”You will get home schooled like all the others.  Four hours a day of basic classes is all that’s required, so that’s what you get.”

Heather’s mind was still trying to cope with not taking her favorite classes anymore, and had hardly heard what was being said to her about her new job. She was going to be the new girl, which meant washing dishes and clearing tables, but Hannah couldn’t have cared less about that.  She was brought out of her daydream when the woman asked her size.  Not answering right away brought a stern bark from Mrs O’Malley…”Answer the woman.  How do you expect to get anywhere in life if you just daydream.”  After telling the woman she was a small, Hannah was handed a dated looking brown uniform.  She was then given some papers to sign before they were finished…”This is for the direct deposit of your paycheck.”  She thought she should read it first, but both the manager and Mrs O’Malley pushed her to just sign it…”Hurry up now, Jenny is waiting.”

Back in the car Hannah could tell that Mrs O’Malley wasn’t happy with her already.  They drove in silence for several miles before pulling into a parking spot in a little downtown area that Hannah knew was her hometown.  She was looking around, trying to see anyone familiar when her and Jenny were directed to get out and head down the sidewalk…”He’s expecting us so keep walking.”  Hannah couldn’t think of where they were headed to as the only things down at that end were a music store, an accountants office and a couple shops she didn’t remember.  As the end of the street grew near, she saw a red glow coming out of the last shop in the row.  Hannah the remembered that it was some kind of salon down there, but she had never seen anyone actually in there.

As they walked in front of the glass the sign was in full view “”Conway’s Hair Salon”.  Mr O’Malley held the door open and sped the 2 girls up…”Come on, he’s already waiting on the two of you.”  Jenny immediately started crying…”I don’t like having my hair cut.  My mommy lets me keep it long.”  Mrs O’Malley was used to handling unwilling young girls as she had done with over 20 girls who had passed thru her house over the years, and she told Jenny just who was making the decisions for her now…”If you’re going to fuss every time you need your haircut, then I’ll make it so you won’t need to have it done so often.”  Jenny was too young to understand what she meant, but Mrs O’Malley cleared it all up for her…”Phil, give her a little girls cut and make sure her bangs are nice and short.”

The barber inserted his scissors above Jenny’s ears and didn’t hesitate to start cutting straight around her head.  Jenny was balling her eyes out, but she was too scared to put up anymore of a fuss.  Hannah, on the other hand, was concerned for her long blonde locks.  It was always in perfect shape, even if she barely did anything besides wash and condition it every couple days.  She sat playing with the hair that sat down the front of her as she watched Jenny’s hair falling to the floor.  Then the barber switched the scissors for an old looking metal clipper.  Hearing it turned on startled both girls, with Jenny about ready to jump out of the chair, but with a stern look from Mrs O’Malley, she sat there as the clippers scraped away at the back of her head.  A few minutes later the very short bowlcut was done and the cape was removed, and Hannah watched a now very childish looking Jenny climbed down from the chair.  Mrs O’Malley thanked Phil for his excellent work, then looked at Jenny…I hope you like it because that’s the cut you’re going to get from now on.”

“Phil smacked the chair a few times with the cape, now crunched in his hand.  Looking right at Hannah now he asked Mrs O’Malley…”Same for this one Betty?”  Mrs O’Malley looked at Hannah…”You can leave it a little longer for her.  I hope that she’s mature enough that we won’t need to teach her a lesson, but if she acts up I want it just like her little friend over here.”  Hannah sat in the chair perfectly still not wanting to do anything to upset the barber, or Mrs O’Malley.”  The barber started to cut, but unlike Jenny’s hair the scissors were held just below her ear.  Hannah closed her eyes tight trying to hold back her tears as she felt the long clumps of hair hitting the cape before falling to the floor,

Mrs O’Malley was happy with what the barber was doing to her…”That length is perfect on her Phil.  She’ll like it a lot more than her older sister will like what you’re going to give her.”  Hannah was confused at how she knew what was happening to her sister,  Mrs O’Malley now had a huge smile on her face…””Phil is the barber for the Juvenile Justice Center.”  Speaking to the barber now…”Her sister will be heading to boot camp next week.”  The barber chuckled…”Oh, those are the easiest for me.  All I take is my heavy-duty clipper and a zero blade.  They all look like Marines when I get thru with them.”  Hannah felt horrible now as she remembered how much Heather’s hair means to her. The barber has finished giving Hannah a short bob and was let up from the chair.  As Mrs O’Malley walked towards the barber to pay for his services she looked at Hannah…”Just remember, if you get out of line I’ll have Phil make you like just like he’s going to make your sister look.”  Hannah gulped at the thought of losing what was left of her hair as they walked out of the shop.

When they arrived at their new house, they were met by they 4 other foster kids already at the house.  There were 2 younger girls, with hair slightly longer than Jenny had and 2 girls in there teens, both with matching haircuts to what Hannah now had.  There were 2 girls per room, all separated by age, Hannah being the oldest now.  By the end of the evening Hannah and Jenny were made well aware of both the rules of the house and the schedules they had to keep.

They all went to bed promptly at 8:30.  At first Hannah wanted to complain that she was much to old for such a childish bedtime, but her roommate, Kiara, told her that both of them had to work the morning shift at the restaurant.  Kiars then warned Hannah that Mrs O’Malley would turn the room lights on at 4:30, and they would be at work by 5:00.  After a few weeks of 6 hours of work every morning, followed by 4 hours of home schooling, thinking were beginning to take there toll on Hannah.  The once top level student was slowly finding it more difficult to complete the basic schoolwork that Mrs O’Malley was giving to them.  While she had breezed her way thru Algebra classes the school year before, she was now finding it hard to concentrate enough to complete basic fractions or make sure she spelled basic words correctly.  Mrs O’Malley wasn’t concerned about any of this as long as Hannah could pass her basic education test, then the checks she received for Hannah’s education would continue to come in.

True to her word, Mrs O’Malley would have all of the kids at Conway’s every couple of months for their haircuts.  Hannah noticed that Phil liked to take it a little shorter each time , but she was smart enough not to open her mouth.  Poor Jenny was getting older now and the bowlcut she still had made her look even more childish as Phil took it higher up her head.  Things became very routine for Hannah, but as time went by she began to wonder what she was going to do when she turned 18.  She assumed by now that she must have a good amount of money saved from all the hours she worked, but she doubted that she could get accepted to anything more than a community college.

A few months after her seventeenth birthday, she began to ask Mrs O’Malley about what was going to happen once she turned 18, and just as important, how much money she had saved from working.  Mrs O’Malley didn’t hold back the truth at all for her…”Money?  What Money?  Every dime you have made has gone towards helping to feed, cloth and educate you.”  Hannah couldn’t believe what she heard, she kept complaining to Mrs O’Malley, but at this point there was absolutely nothing she could do about it.  All she hoped now was that she could find her mom or sister, and they could help her out once Mrs O’Malley made her leave.

It was about 6 months before her 18th birthday and as her day at work was about to end Hannah noticed about 4 police officers come into the restaurant.  Thinking nothing of it she tried to finish up on time so she wouldn’t keep Mrs O’Malley waiting.  To her surprise, Mrs O’Malley walked in the door and began talking with the police and the manager.  As Hannah finished with her work, she made her way into the locker room only to  find 2 officers standing at her locker.  “Okay miss, we need you to open your locker for us.”

Hannah knew she had nothing to hide so she didn’t hesitate to take the combination lock of the door.  It only took a minute before they found an envelope with $300 in cash and a bag with a couple of joints inside.  The officer held up the bag for everyone to see…”She stole the money to pay for her dope habit.”  Mrs O’Malley yelled at the girl…”How could you after after all I’ve done for you?”  All Hannah could do was keep repeating that it wasn’t hers as they handcuffed her and took her away.

A week later Hannah was brought before a Juvenile Courts Judge.  After hearing from the manager of the restaurant and even Mrs O’Malley the judge decided that even though Hannah was close enough to be prosecuted as an adult, he thought there was still hope in her…”I’m going to give you the same sentence that I gave to your sister a few years ago,  and give you one chance to redeem yourself.  You will be taken to the youth boot camp for a period of 26 weeks.”  Hannah immediately thought about Phil talking about taking all her sisters hair off.  She paid attention as the judge continued…”I am also putting you an 5 years of probation, which means if you can’t complete boot camp or get into trouble for the next five years you will go to prison for the whole term.”

The next morning Hannah and three other girls were all put on a bus for the ride out to the outskirts of the county.  As the four girls were walked inside, Hannah noticed someone not far in front of them on the sidewalk.  A few steps later she realized that it was Phil the barber, here to take every hair on her head.  She felt bad for the other three girls who all had hair down to the middle of their backs while hers barely covered her ears.  Hannah could hardly pay attention to anything being said as the girls made there way thru processing.  She was third in the line as they were walked into the next room.  When suddenly the girl at the front stopped and jumped out of line causing the uniformed woman with them to change from being friendly to screaming orders in the girls face…”You are the one who put yourself here and this is part of the price you have to pay, so get in that chair tight now.”  That’s when Hannah saw what she was carrying on about.  It was Phil, standing behind a barber chair, smiling as the girls were being brought to him.

Once all then girls were inside the room, Phil made it a point to single out Hannah…”Hello Hannah.  I heard that you can’t keep your hands off drugs just like your sister.  Well I’m going make you a skinhead just like she is.”  Hannah knew her fate, and had assumed her sister had long since gotten out of the system.  The first two girls had their hair shorn down to nothing more than stubble, then Phil called Hannah to his chair, and as he pulled the cape around her head commented to her..”I knew all along I’d get eventually get to take the rest of your hair.”  As Hannah thought about his words, the clippers quickly removed everything from her head.  It was then that Hannah realized that she was just part of the system and Mrs O’Malley had used her to make money until she got too old.

Now that she had a clear understanding of what had happened to her, Hannah put all her efforts into doing her best at the camp with the hopes of being able to get out and reunite with her sister.  The weeks of hard work and return trips to Phil every three weeks didn’t matter as she counted down the days until she knew she would be out of the system for good.  The girls were down to six weeks away from completing boot camp and they were all talking about what the were looking forward to doing, once they got out.  In the coming days each of the girls who were getting near the end of the program were taken in to see the director of the  camp.

When Hannah was brought to her office, she couldn’t help but notice all the frames and plaques on the wall with awards for the woman’s time in the Marine Corps.  She invited Hannah to have a seat and then proceeded to lay out her plans for her future…”Lets face it young lady, a girl with only a basic education, and no family support doesn’t stand a chance on her own.”  Hannah swallowed a little hard as the woman continued…”In the next room there is a recruiter for the Marine Corps.  It is in your best interest that I recommended to her that she sign you up for a full term.”  Before Hannah could even ask a question the woman started again…”It would be a shame if you got caught again with drugs and had to spend the next 5 years in prison.  Trust me your mother is certainly not enjoying her time there.”

Hannah immediately assumed that if she didn’t join the Marines that somehow she would get caught with drugs again.  The director went to the door and invited the Marine recruiter into the room.  The woman was all business as she laid out all the paperwork…”I have it all made out for you, so all you need to do is sign on 6 different pages and you’re all set.”  As Hannah tried to look at each page, she was hurried along by the recruiter…”It’s all in order for you, so you can just sign your name.”

Hannah knew she was more, or less stuck signing unless she wanted to go to prison.  As she was about to sign the last page she asked the recruiter…”How long do I have to join for.”  The recruiter  waited for the signature to be completed before answering…”A standard commitment is 2 years, but I made yours for a full 6 years.  The sign-up bonus was a lot higher for a full term, so it would have been a waste to pass it up.”  The thought of getting a sign-up bonus sounded good to Hannah….”So how much of a bonus will I get?”  This time it was the director that spoke…”Your bonus will be sent to Mrs O’Malley because she is you guardian.”  Hannah then knew that the whole thing was set up to put more cash into Mrs O’Malley’s pocket.

The recruiter quickly gathered the paperwork and welcomed her new recruit to the corps.  She then told Hannah she would be taken the next day for a full physical and report for basic training 2 weeks after….”Well, at least you’re used to wearing your hair off your collar.  New Marine Corps regs for women require you to keep the same hair style you leave basic training with, so you’re going to be a skinhead for the next 6 years.”  Hannah was not happy when she heard this, but then heard something that put her at ease…”Your sister still has the same cut as you do, and she actually likes it now.”

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