Jerry opened his mouth to start into a lecture right when Kylie lost it. Standing with his mouth open like an idiot he looked down at Kylie not quite understanding. After a few moments of her crying he looked up at the pair of Rylie and Olivia and gestured before he did something rather unusual. Jeremiah turned off his cop personality and sat down on the ground next to Kylie. ”Hey, you’re going to smudge your makeup if you go face down on the ground.” taking off his badge he held it up so Kylie could see what he was doing. ”Normally I would think you’re faking but I see I walked into the middle of a hard day for your family. I’m going to put this away for right now.” Jeremiah tucked the badge into his cargo pants and held up his hands. ”Okay, no more cop. So, let’s get you home alright? You want Rylie to take you home?” Jeremiah gently lifted Kylie’s hair off of the back of her neck and away from her makeup and tear stained face.

Taking care not to startle her Jerry put his hand gently on her arm and lifted her up off the floor helping her into a sitting position. ”Here we go, calm down the water works darling. we’ll get you home and cleaned up and then we can go from there. I won’t put my badge back on today alright? No one is getting in trouble today. Everyone gets a mulligan for right now.” Jerry looked over at Riley and gave him a head nod towards Kylie. ”Come here and let’s get her home okay? I don’t want her driving so if you need me to take anyone I can take someone in my car. I’d take more but I’m driving an unmarked and I don’t think anyone wants to ride in the back seat today.” Shifting to a crouch he gently prevented Kylie from flopping back onto the floor and continuing her bawling.

Jeremiah sighed and gave a rather worn out smile at no one in particular. This was turning into quite the day.

@Viciousmarrow@lovely complex@Emma@BilboTheGreat

Decorated with a cheerful smile, Claire continued chatting and walking elders to their rooms. Today was her monthly volunteering visit at the town’s local nursing home where she spent time taking care of elders. Old people were quite cute, she loved being around them. Almost everyone there knew Claire by name, as she made it her mission to know every single one of them. She was currently pushing one of her favorites, Mrs.Barley, on her wheelchair while humming the elder’s favorite song, Piano Man by Billy Joel.

“Did you have fun today, Mrs.Barley?” Claire asked.

“I did… Yes.. thank you,” She nodded slowly, causing Claire’s insides to burst with love. Seeing people who were slow or needed help just filled her up with a need to help.

“I’m so glad, Mrs.Barley. We worked really hard for all of you to enjoy yourselves. I love coming to see you as well.”

She smiled faintly and mainly kept quiet to herself as Claire continued the conversation by herself. Most of those who she walked to seemed to enjoy hearing her talk about her life, which she was more than happy to do. There was so much going on that she could talk for hours! As the two finally reached Mrs.Barley’s room, Claire helped the woman settle in before making her way to the checkout area. The secretary smiled as she entered.

“You’re so kind to them, Claire. I don’t think you realize how much they enjoy seeing you.”

“I know, it’s such a special thing. I love coming here, seeing all these knowledgeable people is honestly amazing. Thank you so much for letting me have this opportunity.”

After giving a few more goodbyes, Claire strolled to her car in the home’s parking lot.She reached for her planner, the most important book of her life, and crossed out her volunteer work for the day. Next was time to check in on Riley, her new and adorable boyfriend. It had been two weeks, the longest amount of time she’d ever been in a relationship in her life. She’d always wanted a nice, stable relationship and Claire hoped it would last a long time, although deep down she knew the truth. Shaking her head, she refused to talk about it now...

In mid text to Riley, Claire’s phone started to buzz. An unknown number was calling her. That’s strange... Claire answered the phone only to find a soft voice whispering “You hate me too… don’t you?”(@Viciousmarrow) Raising her eyebrow, Claire called out. “Hello? Who is this?” However, no one answered and eventually the phone call was disconnected. Weird… Perhaps someone had the wrong number? Whoever it was, Suzy merely shrugged it off. There were things to do, like finish sending her text to Riley.

I hope you’re having a great day! <3 Thinking of you! (@lovely complex)

After hitting the send button, Claire made her way home. The next three hours would be full of studying and creating a study guide for the upcoming Biology test at the University.

James had gotten changed into some more comfortable clothes to take a nap earlier when he after coming home to his absolute wreck of younger siblings. He had finally headed down to his room around 1:30, and managed to catch up on at least an hour and half of sleep. He would need all the rest he could get while he waited for his siblings to calm down, and to process what Sophia had told him Kylie had done. There was no way that Kylie could be THAT incompetent at the job, as to actually serve someone a biscuit that had fallen on the floor and into glass shards. When he woke up, around 3 pm, he went over to his computer and began by opening up a blank Microsoft Word file. He began typing an idea that popped into his head.

~~~~~

"I was wondering when you'd get around to asking what everything was like back then, before society and the multiverse around us collapsed. Before the skies of earth were darkened with ash, and we were forced to move to this once again desolate rock they call Mars. Or perhaps you are here to mock me, the old Goddess who has failed to fix the worlds. If you will listen, I will share my stories and how I plan to fix this after over seven thousand years of trying. Or at least I think it has been over seven thousand, it's hard to keep track after your first thousand years. Just you try it.

But even this universe is collapsing and it is starting to kill me to keep this solar system safe. I have one last chance to set things right. It's time to start the cycle again. Return the world to the Aether and the Void and let the leylines grow pure and watch as Goddess to make sure they aren't abused. But for the next few months,
while it happens, I want to reminisce, so I hope you brought some snacks. It won't be painful by the way, to quote an old friend, "it's quicker and easier than falling asleep."

It all started when I was nine years old back in the beautiful Spencer Park in De Motte, Indiana. My fifteen, almost sixteen, year old sister was sitting under "her tree" meditating or something. I was playing in the park with some of my friends near the playground, playing tag. It was 5:37 pm, after the fourth day back in school and we were excited. However it's getting late and our mother is going to tell us to get home for dinner soon. I'm going to have to get Ashley this time, even though she doesn't like being bothered when she's at her tree.

"Ash. Mom's going to want us to come home soon." I holler at her as her face stays deadpan.

She remains motionless under her tree. So I run across the grass to her to shake her, but as I approach I begin to get dizzy. By the time I reach the tree I can hardly walk straight.

"Ashley! Please get up, I don't feel good. My head hurts. Ashley!" I have to sit down or I'm going to faint. I sit next to Ashley on her right side and start taking deep breaths, "Ash. Please. We need to go home."

My left hand lands on her right hand and I feel a powerful draw like I'm being sucked into Ashley's body. A powerful draw that I am powerless to resist. The last thing I remember is my eyes closing."

~~~~~

His works weren't something he often put out there for others to judge, but perhaps this may be an exception. This may be a story he tells people. How even mighty gods and goddesses can fall prey to time and hubris. At least God-like beings can. He saves and closes the project, locking it with a password so if anyone wanted to get in, it would at least be a pain to do so. Besides who'd want to, he wasn't going to lie to himself, it was a huge fanfiction piece, not some multi million, or heaven forbid a multi billion dollar story franchise like Harry Potter or Twilight. Then again, he didn't want that kind of fame anyway. And then he walked back to his bed and just crawled into it, lying on his stomach, and he began quietly sobbing, though one might hear it if they were at his door. He's been working so hard for so long that he never really gave himself a chance to mourn his parents. Between that and all the stress, he just broke down, somewhat surprised it took so long. He couldn't even find it in himself to cry at the funeral, though that might have been flat out shock that it wasn't some huge joke. But now, he just couldn't stop the tears as he cried into his pillow.

_{@Themerlinhawk's post will have the discussion with Riley, Kylie, Zoey, and Olivia.}

Before Riley took his sisters home, he apologized to Tara, "I think I need some alone time with my sisters... I'll text you, okay? Unless you need a ride! Then by all means, let me take you home." @Knight of Doom

The twin had noticed Elliot had already taken his leave, that was probably for the best. Hopefully, he'll get to see him again but under better circumstances.

---

After the officer left, having revealed that he was their next door neighbor, Riley made a sigh of exasperation. Looking at his other siblings, he gestured for them to get cleaned up and rest... they all needed it.

"In a bit, I'll call everyone down. I think we all need to have a family meeting..." Staring at each of his sisters (minus Sophi), he gave a calm smile, as if this was all behind him, "I love you all. Remember that, always. Now go! I can't get cleaned until the bathrooms are free." He stuck out his tongue and watched the two young ones run upstairs. Kylie seemed like she wanted to say something but before she got the chance, Riley ruffled her hair and said, "Later, okay?"

Escaping from his twin, he rushed to his bedroom. Closing the door behind him and locking it, he sprawled out onto his wood floor. He had no idea if Sophi and James were home, but right now, he didn't care. He just wanted to be alone. Pulling out his phone, he saw a text from Claire and a soft smile fell on his face.



The worse texter award would probably go to Riley for keeping things so short but it was way too much effort typing long messages. Laying his phone on the ground, he brought his body in a sit up position and began to exercise as he waited for the bathrooms to be available.

---

After he was cleaned and in a new outfit, the twin laid on his bed and closed his eyes... the next thing he knew an hour had passed. Sitting up and wiping the drool off his face, he nodded, "Alright. Time to start this shit."

Throwing his door open, he yelled, "BITCHES. FAMILY MEETING DOWNSTAIRS. NOW. With love, Riley~" He banged on all his sisters doors loud and abruptly. He didn't know if Sophi was behind her door but he punched it anyways, "WAKEY WAKEY, EGGS AND BAKEY!"

Running now, Rye went downstairs (to the main floor) making sure his steps resounded in the basement below him. STOMP. STOMP. STOMP. Throwing James' door open, also having no clue if he was home, Riley cooed annoyingly while poking his head into the basement, looking down in the darkness, "Oh dear brother! BROTHER! We require thy presence! We hast matt'rs to talketh about!" His speech jumped from regular English to Shakespearean. Making his way to the fireplace in the living room, he waited for all his siblings. Sleep had obviously made him hyper so he was doing a little jiggle as he waited. Taking out his phone, he even texted his siblings.



@The Muse@Viciousmarrow@Saint Girralo@BilboTheGreat@Emma

Chris had spent most of the morning in the car, as he had to drive an hour to and from the specialist hospital in the city. His doctor appointment went as well as could be expected. They had prescribed him some new medication that he was not looking forward to taking. The car ride back ended uneventfully, and he got back to Millington around eleven. The rest of his day was spent working his short shift at the flower shop. Chris had spent most of the afternoon bundling together the last of the bouquets for the Samson wedding taking place at the church tomorrow. Purple seemed to be the theme of the wedding, as he tied purple delphiniums, irises and violets together with a fancy satin bow.

It was the biggest order of flowers since the Reese's funeral four weeks ago. He had attended, dressed in black like everyone else. Mrs. Reese had been his piano teacher for six years until he quite in 11th grade. He knew the whole family, and the death of the Reese parents rocked most of the town. As did the death of the drunk teen who crashed into them. Robert Avery a junior at Millington high killed the Reese parents on impacted. He ended up dying in the hospital hours later, and his girlfriend Phoebe luckily made it with only a broken leg. Chris's mother had been the surgeon for Roberts case, she had tried her best but the brain damage had been severe, and the internal damage was more then exspected. The Avery family was well known around town, as they owned the Millcreek Hollow apartments. Chris wondered if the Reese's hated the Avery family now.

Only two customers came into the store that day, as most people ordered deliveries over the phone, and Aunt Cynthia went to personally deliver them. Mrs. Johnson came in early and bought some white roses for her daughter, to celebrate the birth of her first grandchild. Chris wrote out her message in elegant script on a customary card, and charmed the old woman, who had once been his second grade teacher. Patrick Erwan was a regular who came in every week to buy red tulips for his bedridden wife Joan, and he always seemed to linger at the candy isle only to shake his head and just get the flowers. Chris actually loved working here, though most days were just as slow. He restocked the balloon counter with the new shipment of Disney princess birthday balloons.

It was two in the afternoon by the time his Aunt came back and told him he could head out. He drove by the Queen's Orchid hoping to grab lunch but was disappointed to see that it was closed for the day. They were the only place in town that he liked to eat other than Giovanni's which was not really a place you go alone to. He ended up back at home to fix himself a green kale smoothie, something he drank for the health benefits and not the taste. He blended up the kale, lime, carrots, spinach, banana, and then added some almond milk, and Greek yogurt. Christopher chugged the green crap down, and then placed his cup in the sink. He had grown up with a maid who came every morning, so cleaning was never something he ever thought to do. A least he never thought to until he started living on his own in the Dartmouth dorms. He had learned to do laundry the hard way after bleaching his favorite shirt, and melting his soccer jersey...twice.

Checking his watch, he saw that is was almost three, and decided to pick up his brother Blake at the high school. Normally his brother just walked home, but Chris was feeling bored today so he got in the car and drove to the high school. He waited in the pickup line with the gaggle of parents in their mini vans and SUVs. His red jaguar stood out of course, he owned the only red car in town other than old McNealy’s rusty bucket Chevy. He plugged his phone into the stereo and turned on M83. He waited for school to let out, as he listened to the music and watched the middle school soccer team start its after school practice. He watched them kids play soccer, and envied them.

_{Collab with @The Muse}

Kylie’s mood seemed to have changed drastically after the family’s run in with Jerry the Friendly Neighborhood Cop. After his sweet and chivalrous actions at the mall, the redhead had become smiles and giggles around the blonde. Of course, he did leave Kylie and her siblings with a warning: any more stunts like what had transpired at the mall, and he wouldn’t be so nice anymore. Like most of her siblings, she knocked out for a couple of hours although it was a wonder she managed to stay awake for so long. It truly seemed like Kylie never slept, always jacked up on energy drinks and Mountain Dew.

Waking up, the woman planned on powering her computer up and doing the usual, but, looking at her phone, she noticed the Wifi was still down. There was no point in playing anything without the internet! Well, unless those games were dating sims or romantic adventures. Those were the best games to play alone, but she wasn’t in the mood for romance. Plotting to take back the router, she strode out of her room and tip toed over to Riley’s door, opening the door ever so slightly. The flame haired male was sleeping soundly, a light snore coming from his mouth. Kylie always thought his snores were so adorable!

Smirking, she gently pulled the door back into its proper place and slowly moved down the stairs, lest she wake someone. Riley wasn’t exactly the cleverest of people, so his twin figured he would have hid the router’s wires somewhere obvious. Like under the couch’s cushion. As predicted, there they were! ”Huzzah!” she whispered to herself, almost immediately reprimanding herself for using her brother’s stupid nerd language. He was such a dork.

Collecting the spoils of war, Kylie deduced the only other place the router could go would be in Sophi’s room. The eldest Reese was surely not going to mind she assumed and fled up the stairs to the door that led to Sophi’s only location of reprieve. Like a cat in the dead of night, Kylie entered silently and stealthy, careful not to make any sudden movements. Inching carefully and slowly across the floor, she mimed Solid Snake from the Metal Gear series until she reached her sister’s dresser. The time to reclaim the internet was nigh.

But first, she needed to update her Twitter status. The brunette was sleeping soundly and Kylie couldn’t resist, so she snapped an unflattering picture of Sophi while she was sprawled across the bed. ’LOL SHE’S SO CUTE. LOOK AT THOSE BOOGERS IN HER NOSE! #SleepySis #GoldMine #Ew’ Back to business, the redhead stuck the ethernet cable into the proper port and plugged the power supply in, making more noise than she intended. However, at least the deed was done and Riley would no longer have power over the router’s well-being.

"BITCHES. FAMILY MEETING DOWNSTAIRS. NOW. With love, Riley~"

Well, she had gotten the router hooked up before her brother could notice, so she could live with a family meeting as long as she got to enjoy games afterward.

For about thirty solid blissful minutes Sophia had actually gotten some sleep. She had heard nothing of her sister’s entry, having been deep in a dream about auditioning for the role of Marilyn Monroe in a rendition of her life. Unfortunately it seemed that all good things had to come to an end. Just as Sophia got on stage to sing Marilyn’s song “One Silver Dollar”, her brother’s crude voice blasted through and ripped apart her dreams.

“Bright Silver Dollar!” Sophia sat up in bed quickly as her brothers fist slammed on her door, practically yelling out one of the lyrics to the song she was about to sing. Her eyes then found her sister there, causing her to jump back from surprise and let out a small yelp. “ Jesus Kylie!” She put her hand over her chest, heart racing. “I didn’t know you were home… What the hell are you doing in my room?” She glared, trying to take a second to let herself breathe. Another rude awakening in this house. How many had that been now?

Slowly, her eyes scanned the area Kylie had been standing in. What did she go through? What had she seen? Her heart started beating faster at the thought, and irritation began bubbling under the surface. Soon enough, though, Sophia spotted the router Kylie had apparently set up in her room. She sighed, half out of relief and half out of disappointment. “Did Riley give that back to you?”

Kylie winced at the sound of her sister’s voice. ”Uh… Yeah, of course! I’ve been a good girl today.” she lied, hoping her sister didn’t notice the goofy smile on her face that definitely gave her true motives away. ”I figured you wouldn’t mind it being here since it doesn’t make sense to have it downstairs. Poor reception and what not, you know?” Her deep blue eyes glanced over her sister’s form and lingered on her sister’s chest a bit too long. ”Uh… You got some boob popping out, sis.” Kylie noted, gesturing for Sophi to fix the awkward situation. Hopefully that would steer the conversation away from the router.

Glancing down at her chest, Sophia hastily pushed her breasts back down and pulled up her shirt. Slightly red in the face, Sophia brought her light blue eyes back up to glare at Kylie once more. “Get out.Now.” She pointed to the door before standing up and adjusting her clothes again. “How did she become such a nuisance?” She thought, watching as her sister scurried out of her room. “Note to self, get a lock.” She eventually followed behind Kylie, closing the door behind her.

Once down the stairs, Sophia met eyes with her younger brother who had so rudely woken her up. “Family meeting?” She raised a brow before taking a seat on the couch, reminiscing on how their parents use to call family meetings whenever something important was going on. It almost stung a little if she thought about it too much. “Did you get Claire pregnant already?” She joked, smirking and clearly unaware of what had happened after Riley had closed down the diner.

Apparently, the redhead couldn’t mention her sister’s knockers without getting kicked out of the room, so Kylie moved her feet as fast as she could out the door and down the stairs. Sophi wasn’t the sibling she wanted to piss off too much lest she get socked in the face. Like clockwork, the other siblings funneled into the living room. As she sat down next to Sophia, a sudden thought struck Kylie like an arrow. Something that might help the family. It was absolutely brilliant! Well, at least she thought. She was so engrossed with her idea that she completely missed Sophia’s comment about Claire.

”Oooh! Oooh! Riley! I have an idea! Maybe I should start?!” Kylie proclaimed, bouncing up from her seat and hopping up and down with her hand in the air. Surely, the redhead was either on drugs or… No, her family definitely thought she was on drugs right now. Kylie was never this spunky or happy.Truth be told, Jerry had salvaged her day earlier with the kindness he had shown.

Maybe she’d show him some kindness later on too.
_{@lovely complex@Emma@BilboTheGreat@Saint Girralo}

After he’d gotten the Reese family home the talk had been a rather straightforward one. Basically it had amounted to stay out of trouble. The younger kids needed to be in school and everyone else needed to stay away from controlled substances and scenes in public. This had been compounded by the fact that he lived next door. Largely to his own horror. Still it meant that he could keep a close eye on them. The whole conversation had been wrapped up with Jerry telling them that if they did do anything particularly stupid they were to call him. If he found out any other way or ended up showing up on his own they were going to have problems.

With that whole situation settled Jerry had returned home in a hurry. The Reese family was going to be interesting to live next to.

Jerry sat in the front room of the empty house. A card table was set up in front of the blonde cop. His hazel eyes were fixed on the house next to him, the front window provided a perfect view of the street and the surrounding houses. The house had been chosen for its tactical benefits as well as its appeal. A pity he hadn’t had time to do more research on the neighborhood, then again the Reese family was almost good to have around in a way. They were at the center of attention here in Millington. Which meant that it was easy to keep an eye on the pulse of the town by being close to the Reese family.

Opening CME on his computer he sorted by type of death and scrolled down until he found the Coroner report for the Reese family. Tabbing Acurant in the background he entered the phone number Nana had given him and her name and let the laptop run the acurant dialogue in the background before he brought the Coroner report to the front again. Hitting the slow scroll on his page down he began slowly clearing the custom AR-15 he had laid out on the card table in front of him. His fingers found the pieces easily and by touch he began assembling it as he read the report. It was pretty straightforward really; mom and dad were dead the kids were left behind.

Jeremiah leaned back as he began fitting the larger parts of the AR together. With a few more deft motions it was assembled and he slapped the clip into the receiver. With a swift jerk he chambered one of the rounds. Taking out the clip he ejected the remaining rounds one by one. One. Two. Three. Four. Five. With a smooth jerk he caught the sixth round as he wrenched back on the receiver. Six. Setting it on the table he pulled up the info for Nana. It was just a DMV report; there wasn’t really a good reason to run her for a criminal record so DMV would have to do for now. Pursing his lips he read. Nana Darling, age 21, home address, the usual stuff. Jeremiah wrinkled his nose and looked up as a moving van pulled up in his front drive. Carefully reloading the AR he zipped it back up in its case and took it to his room before opening the front door.

The movers had made it early which was a god send. Opening the front door and then the garage he started helping them move boxes in after carefully locking and closing his laptop. If he got everything put away by the evening it might be worth calling Nana and then dropping in on the Reese family again to invite them over in the next day or two for a BBQ. The other off duty deputies that day had already been invited now it was a matter of making a few friends between now and then.

Jerry looked down at his phone. Tempted to hit the new contact in the phone with Nana’s name on it to invite her now but the boxes needed somewhere to go and such a quick call might come off as unappealing. With a sigh he slid the phone back into his pocket and went about the business of turning the house into a home as he unpacked and put his various possessions away while the movers put his bed back together.

All and all the day had been a success; he’d found people that, while they had been odd, were at the least relatable in some fashion. They belonged here and Jeremiah was starting to get the feeling that he could belong here too.

Was James ready for this? He was already somewhat annoyed that Riley had disturbed him, and was he sure he was ready to go over all the bullshit that happened in those two fucking hours while he was at class? He had to be, he had to find out if Kylie was really that impossibly stupid at the Diner, along with all the other stuff that led to the diner being closed for the day. Flipping on a light at the side of his bed, James stood up, and ran a hand through his hair before walking to his closet, and unlocking it. He picked out something more appropriate to wear out to put on, and got changed as quickly as possible so he could have a talk with his siblings and maybe afterwards he'd see what Nathan was up to. Since he wasn't working the day away after all, he was hoping to spend it catching up with his friend.

Having finished changing, James folded the clothes he changed out of, and set them back into their place, as they weren't worn long enough to be considered dirty. Not bad, he thought as he quickly brushed his hair, which was getting pretty long, covering his eyes in the front. He wiped the tears from his eyes, which remained slightly red. Slipping on socks and shoes, James made his way upstairs to the living room to handle the family meeting. He hadn't done anything wrong lately, besides possibly slightly offend Riley today by running out the door at breakfast, but he had to get to class and Riley knew that. He was the cleanest one of them all today, not having done anything to cause trouble for them, and so he sat down in one of the chairs in the living room. While he waited for the rest of his family to make their way to the living room, he pulled out his phone and shot a text over to Nathan, 'Hey, not sure if you've been by yet, but some shit happened apparently and the diner is closed for the day. Since I'm caught up with my classes, I was wondering if maybe you wanted to hang out?'

@karamonnom@Viciousmarrow@lovely complex@The Muse@Emma@BilboTheGreat

The hairs on the back of Elliot's next rose as he walked away from the woman's house. Something felt... wrong. It almost felt like being stared at by that woman earlier. Almost with... a certain hunger? He couldn't shake the feeling as he made his way into town. Finally, behind him, he caught the sound of a soft pat pat pat, and he turned to see...

A border collie?

It kept a bit of distance from him, but it was obvious that the dog had targeted him. As soon as Elliot stopped walking it sat down, waiting. Staring at the bag in his hand, and then at him, and then at the bag. His dinner? Fat chance of him giving that up. He shook his head defiantly at the stray and began walking once more towards home.

Pat, pat, pat.

Elliot ignored the noise, for awhile. At first he hoped it would just run away, he had a soft spot for dogs and didn't want to start shooing it. Still, as they made their way further into town hope soon fell away. The dog was persistent. He stopped to take another look behind him, and it sat down immediately.

STARE

"No..."

The whine escaped Elliot's lips just as the dog let out it's own whine at him, begging. Elliot turned around again and started limping away as quickly as possible. That food was good, damnit. He didn't need strays stalking him trying to ruin his chances of a good dinner tonight.

Pat, pat, pat

Growing ever more irritated, Elliot spun on his heels a final time, ready to shout the beast away:

"LOOK YOU-"

STARE

It was right in front of him now, eyes wide and sparkling. Elliot felt his resistance crumbling, and with a sigh he opened his bag and peered through it, seeing what Nana had packed him. Granola bars... Fruit snacks... Cookies... Bananas? With horror, it began to dawn on him that the only thing he could remotely feed it was... His dinner. He whined again, relenting under the animal's stare and opened the Tupperware, trying to keep enough inside for later while dumping some onto the ground in front of him.

Like lightning, the dog shot forward and devoured his offering, tail wagging furiously. He hardly had time to close the lid before he found himself forced to the ground, practically drowning in dog kisses. He sputtered, scratching it behind the ears while trying to get away, rather unsuccessfully. Finally, realizing it was his life at stake here, he spoke up:

"All right, all right! Get off me already!"

With a bit of a push, the animal backed off. However, it did not run, instead contenting itself to watching him struggle back onto his feet. Geeze, he was going to be sore by the end of this day. He went about collecting the now discarded container of spaghetti, surprised that the animal hadn't run away with it, and put it back into the bag he'd been given. He scratched behind the dog's ears one final time before making his way once more into town.

Pat, pat, pat

The dog was beside him now, almost mockingly nonchalant about accompanying him.

Elliot stopped.

The dog sat.

He began walking once more.

Pat, pat, pat

I must be seriously going crazy.

Still, he didn't bother to stop the dog. The thing was pretty skinny, definitely was in need of a good cleaning. The two made a perfect pair, Elliot had felt like a stray himself much of the last few years. His appearance wasn't exactly the cleanest either right now. Letting out a sigh of resignation he made a note to get in touch with his landlord.

It looked like he had a fucking dog now.

Nathan's class ended and unsurprisingly he got shot down by the girl in his stats class. On the upside, he finally did figure out her name. It was Lauren. And she didn't like being called "sweet cheeks". Or 'baby". Or "cute pie".

He was lounging around at home, thinking up of other girls in his other classes that he can ask out. He also had to keep track of who had already rejected him. It was a lot of work, truly.

Suddenly his phone went off, interrupting his thoughts. He checked his texts and was surprised to see it was from James. Even more surprisingly, he was free to hang out tonight. Well forget anything he was going to do tonight! He was going to teach James to have fun! And he only needed one night to do it. Though he was still curious about what happened to the diner. It rarely just closed like that. He'll have to ask James when they hang out.

But first he needed to text him back."Closed Diner? What is this? Twilight Zone? You're free today? What? Who are you and what have you done to James? JK. Text me when and where and I'll be there. XOXO"

He decided to take another shower while he waited for James to reply back. Never know who you might meet out there. Gotta look your best all of the time, right? He was pretty excited to be hanging out with his best friend. When was the last time they did this? It felt like forever.

@Saint Girralo

The drive home was basically filled with a melancholy silence, reminiscent of the drive to the funeral four weeks ago. The police officer drove behind them, and Olivia was concerned, she really didn’t want to go to jail or anything. She had stopped crying after getting in the car, because she felt like she had no tears left. She sat in the back of the car next to Zoey, with the shopping bags in between them. Now that she was not balling her eyes out, she was actually kind of mad at Zoey for running off.

Zoey had always been the sisters she was closest to, and she even considered Zoey her best friend…at least up until a year or so ago, when Zoey started high school and had no time for Olivia anymore. She remembered playing fairies in the backyard with her sister, running around in tutus and making mudpies. She missed the time when playing with barbies, and singing along to Disney music at the top of their lungs was their favorite thing to do together. Olivia used the end of her sleeve to wipe the mustard off her cheek, as stared mindlessly out the window. Her sweater and hair were still damp and dirty from when she clung to Riley in the food court.

She was surprised when she saw the cop parked in the new neighbor’s driveway. Although she was in trouble at the moment, the thought of a policeman living next door made her feel safer. She was the last to get out of the car and go inside the house, as she was trying to prepare herself for whatever punishment she was going to get. When she sat down in the living room, and Riley let Jerry inside, Ollie took a deep breath to brace herself. She fiddled with the ends of her hair as she listened to Jerrys brief reprimand. After he left Riley calmly smiled, and told everyone to clean themselves up and rest before the family meeting he had planned for later.

Olivia washed her face in the bathroom, making sure only to glance in the mirror as needed. She quickly brushed hair out, and then braided it back to how she had it this morning. Leaving the bathroom she headed to her room to change out of her wet sweater and terrible hoe outfit. She undressed and tossed everything into the overflowing laundry basket next to the closet door. She put on the only pair of blue jeans she owned, and then pulled on a fuzzy pink jumper over her plain tee. She did not really want to be in the same room with Zoey at the moment, so Olivia grabbed her diary from its hiding place, and went down stairs to the kitchen. She grabbed and orange out of the fruit bowl on the counter, and filled her water bottle up with ice water. Slipping on her shoes she left quietly out the back door.

She walked across the backyard and into the tree line. It was chilly outside, but she loved the cold, and she really missed the snow. Angry at Zoey, upset with Kylie, apologetic to Riley, and disappointed in herself she was a mix of emotions. She walked farther into the forest area behind her house, following the makeshift path to her little getaway. Reaching the treehouse she put her diary, water and orange in the old plastic bucket and pulled the rope to make it go up into the trees. She pulled the ladder down, and climbed up and onto the deck of the tree house.

Riley had built the place with James and Sophia back when Olivia was in kindergarten. Back then it had become the neighborhood clubhouse. A time of sleepovers, ghost stories, Pokémon card trading, secret handshakes, and spin the bottle. By the time Olivia was nine the place had been left abandoned by the older teens. Zoey and Olivia took it over, making it there princess castle, and their dad helped them paint it all pink with a sunflower mural on one side. This past year and a half the treehouse had slowly become Olivia’s little hide away, full of her books and art. No one ever went up in it anymore except her, so she had made the place her own by bringing in her stuff.

From the looks of the place, some might call it a death trap, or an accident waiting to happen. Built by tweens from scrape wood and old planks, the peeling paint, and ware and tare of time made it look like it would fall out of the tree at any moment. But it was solid and sturdy; her father had made sure of that. She crawled into the tiny door, and then stood up inside. She tugged the rope pulley system to bring up her stuff in that she had left in the bucket. Sitting down in the beanbag she peeled her orange, and tried to forget about her day. As she ate a slice; she opened up her diary and began writing.



By the time she was finished writing an hour had already past. She chugged down her ice water, and checked her phone for the first time since texting Riley at the mall. She read the text from James.

'Remember about five, maybe six years back when I was going through that rough patch and I was doing poorly in school and stopped doing... Almost everything? It wasn't pretty and I know that, but I got through it, and I know you can too. I know things have been hard lately, but understand you have all of us here for you. We all love you very much, and I want you to understand that.'

She thought she had been hiding her true emotions pretty well but apparently not. She tightened her hand around the phone, and felt a little shard of her broken self glue back into place. She text James back. ‘I love you too. Thanks Jamie, I really needed you to say that. Thank God I have one normal sibling. I don’t want to be like Kylie, I just said that because I am stupid. I was being really dumb. Sorry. ’ She pressed send. She got up and went over to the corner where she kept the stack of books, and magazines. She cracked open her well used copy of Inkheart, as she plopped into the hammock, and then wrapped herself in a blanket. She began reading.

A few hours later she woke from her phone beeping that it had a new text. It was Riley rallying the family for a meeting in the living room. She tossed off the blankets and yawned as she grabbed her diary of the floor. She climbed down the ladder and walked slowly to the house. Opening the back door she slipped her shoes off, and entered. She could hear people in the living room, and its sounded like Kylie talking cheerily. Olivia walked into the living room and sat on the floor in front of their dads arm chair. She always did this, it was her spot, it also kept anyone from sitting in her Daddies chair.

Rubbing her dried out eyes from the constant stare at her bright, computer screen, Claire knew her studying was done for the day. She yawned and glanced down at her iPhone, smiling at the thought of texting Riley again. Claire was currently planning the two’s next surprise date. It would be absolutely perfect. They would spend the whole afternoon playing and having fun at the town’s amusement park while ending the night with dinner at Giovanni’s Italian Restaurant. It was partly silly, she knew, but Claire had always wanted to ride to the top of the ferris wheel and kiss someone. The restaurant would be a nice balance and a chance to see Riley dressed up too, something she had yet to experience. All that was left was to tell Riley to keep his schedule open. Speaking of which, Claire began moving her thumbs.

To: Riley @lovely complex
I hope you’re not doing anything this Sunday <3 It’s a secret. Love youu!

Snatching a peek at her planner, Claire prepared herself for a jog around Cherry Blossom Park. She absolutely despised the rich scent of gross bodies odors and sweaty feet of gyms but the town’s park was the perfect place to get some exercise. The environment and atmosphere of friends playing, families spending time together, lovers meeting, was too beautiful to pass up. She glanced back down at her phone and found herself texting Riley again.

To Riley: @lovely complex
Hey again! :) I’m going to go for a jog around the park, care to join me? <3

Claire dressed in her gym clothes and packed a bag of two water bottles (in case Riley decided to come) as well as some apples and a few granola bars. As she made her way out of the room, Claire glanced at the calendar hanging above her bookshelf and frowned. How much time did she have left? Time seemed to go by so quickly, she could barely keep track of it.

The forecast had claimed the weather to be fairly warm but wouldn’t get higher than 58 degrees. Perfect running weather. Grinning as she arrived at the park, Claire tightened her shoelaces and took a gaze around the area. It wasn’t as busy as she hoped but enough to keep her entertained. She slipped her phone into her pocket, in case of a text from Riley, and began her jog.

"I think I need some alone time with my sisters... I'll text you, okay? Unless you need a ride! Then by all means, let me take you home." Riley looked at her with eyes that looked like a kicked puppy.

“Naw, it’s fine, I can walk. Go figure out whatever you need to,” She waved goodbye, a bit disappointed in how she thought the afternoon was going to go. Oh well, she had a couple classes to go to.

Her next class was a bit more interesting. History was fairly cool. Especially all the wars and battle technology. The different weapons interested her more than whatever enzyme was used for photosynthesis. However, the second class was out, she was out.

Her apartment was kinda shitty, but it was cheap. She remembered that her first day of work was later tonight. Dang, now she can finally have something of an income. She had been hired so that there was a young, pretty face to bring customers in. So, she had been instructed to look nice. A part of looking nice (at least in Tara's book) was being physically fit. So, she decided to go exercise in the park. As much as she'd love to use the equipment in the town gym, she just didn't have the money. At this point it seemed as though that fact alone dominated her life, but that would change soon enough.

With some nice exercise clothing she got for Christmas on, she headed to the park with her phone, headphones, a towel, and a bottle of water. The athletic girl wrapped her phone in her towel and shoved it under the shoulder strap of her top, so she didn't have to hold it and it didn't get sweat on it. After a bit of stretching, Tara noticed a small blonde jogging around. She couldn't really make out who it was at first, so shrugged it off and began her own run.

@BlueAjah

Note: We took some liberties on having Zoey show up late.
_{Collab with @The Muse, @lovely complex, @Viciousmarrow}

Before anything commenced and Sophia had joked about Riley getting his girl pregnant, “God, I wish.” his phone vibrated once, nope twice more. Ah, speaking of the devil. A sly grin fell on his face as he sent a text back to his doll.



By ‘there’, he meant by the Greenhouse in the park but Rye usually always gave limited information unless the person digged further. He would bring up the possible Sunday plans when he saw her. The excitement swelled on his face. Escaping his family and watching Claire sweat? Man, that was too hot for words.

The male twin needed this meeting to end. Fast. There was a lady waiting for him, his lady.

Rolling his eyes at his older sister, he laughed, ”Oh that’s cute. How long has it been since you got laid?” Riley’s filter when it came to sex flew out the door but at least he was honest with his family. His mind had a hard time considering those around him when the inner pervert in him was filled with intrigue and eagerness. Olivia had sat on the floor in her usual spot and James made his way to the sofa. Where was Zoey?

Sophia scoffed at her brothers comeback, rolling her eyes. It had been quite some time for her, but she didn’t need to broadcast it to the entire family. Thinking back to the last person she had intimate relations with made her skin crawl, so instead of saying some snide comment back, Sophia fell silent.

“Oh God, you’re fucking her already? What an easy slut.” Kylie cried disappointingly while shaking her head.

“Nah Kye, but that’s the goal. THE DREAM even! One day my Claire-bear and me are gonna make” Slowly, Riley made pelvic thrust motions, ”Sweet, sweet, honey sweet babies!”

Kylie reddened in the face as her brother made lewd comments about coupling with his girlfriend. ”What the fuck is wrong with you?” she commented snidely, silently daring him to say anything more about this topic. Her good mood was already starting to wane.

“Rye!” Sophia interrupted, gesturing to little Olivia sitting on the ground, hearing and watching everything. “Knock it off, would ya?” She had nearly forgotten that Riley could get just as vulgar as Kylie sometimes. They were twins after all.

Shrugging not finding any wrong in his actions, the flamed-haired male decided to get the show on the road. Zoey had showed up fashionably late as always. From his butt pocket, he pulled out a tiny beanie baby bear. He began puppeting the white stuffed animal.

”Herro! Angel, the talking bear here! Remember the rules. Do not speak until I’m in your hand and please… treat me gently.” Bringing his attention to his twin, who wanted to suggest an idea, Rye continued with the high pitched bear voice, ”Maybe if you’re a good girl you can go next~” He winked at his twin playfully. This bear was their parents’ solution on solving the “Our kids can’t shut up when someone else talks” problem. Sometimes it worked, sometimes it failed terribly.

Since Riley had the bear first, he would start.

Breaking out of the “Angel” character, he spat out a summary of this morning’s events rapidly to bring everyone up to speed, ”Diner. Shitshow. Kylie was thrown under the boss… oops. Angry me kicked her out. SLAP! Sophi slapped Elliot and took a break. By the way guys, Elliot’s back!” Shaking his head in disapproval, he brought his attention to his older sister, “He didn’t deserve that. Even if you’re angry as shit. Slapping him makes you no better than him.”

Bringing the bear up and placing it on his head, Rye rolled on with the summary, ”Angry me was alone with Ron. Closed shop because fuck that noise. Went to the mall for lunch to discover three slutty ‘smoke weed errrrday’ sisters and da popo.” He looked down at Olivia remembering her text and finally answered her question, ”Oh! Yeah. Mom did. But that was for her mental health. Kylie abused that… and still does.” Turning to his twin, he narrowed his eyes, ”You’re gonna get us arrested one day. It’s ILLEGAL to miss school without a good excuse. It’s ILLEGAL to smoke weed. It’s ILLEGAL to give minors weed.” After emphasizing the illegal-ness of his twin’s actions, he resumed with the summary, “Fortunately, today was the police man’s day off and he let us off the hook. BUT GUESS WHAT?!!?! He lives next door!”

Sophia’s eyes grew a little wider as she listened to Riley, who appeared more and more like their father every day. Apparently a lot had happened in the time that Sophia had been off flirting with Anthony, slightly out of spite for Elliot. “Where is Houdini anyway?” She thought, glancing over at Olivia and Zoey who had gone on an illegal adventure with Kylie. She frowned, “Dad would be so disappointed…”

Relieved that the filler bullshit was out of the way, he tossed the bear to his twin to get her’s over and done with… the sooner she spoke, the better off they all would be and ended his spew with a thumbs up.

”You wanna know what is legal, Riley? Sucking my fucking dick, you assclown.” With a huff and evil eyes absolutely leering at her brother, she caught the bear and began her speech. ”It wasn’t my fault that this shit happened anyways. If Riley hadn’t fired me for doing a shitty job, which, mind you, NOBODY taught me how to do any of that crap. I mean, seriously, what the fuck is wrong you guys? ‘Hey, let’s get that sister of ours that’s never worked a day in her life and has crippling social anxiety! Let’s make her do all the work!’ Fucking great idea, dipshits. Bravo.” Kylie mocked her siblings, even going so far as to give them a sarcastic round of applause.

”Who would have known you couldn’t clean up fucking glass off the floor?” The twin annoyingly glared at his sister.

“It isn’t that hard to stand at the front and walk people to a nice seat, without serving them glass covered biscuits.” Sophia glared at Kylie, blue eyes as cold as ice. The “bear” trick their parents had implemented wasn’t working well today.

The redheaded female was glowering at both Sophia and Riley, her face a rosy tint as she struggled to contain her anger. Tension was strong in the air. She should have just marched out right then, but she just wanted to get this crap over with. Plus, her idea might be able to regain her siblings’ respect. ”Anyway, I have solution to all this crap with the diner so this never happens again.” Kylie finally spoke after a moment of silence. ”You guys are getting fucked in the ass with work, aren't you? Riley works all damn day, Sophi looks like she's gained 20 pounds from stress, and James… Well, I rarely see him. The point is that everybody is overloaded with stress, and that’s not good for anybody.” she started.

“Hey!” Sophia scowled at her sister as she mentioned gaining weight. She hadn’t gained any weight! Had she? Her eyes glanced down at her stomach, suddenly straightening up her posture. Bad posture meant rolls and rolls were a no-go. She had skipped the gym today in favor of a nap instead… maybe she should have just went afterall. “After the date… I’ll go for a run…”

“What would be great for everybody is a change of pace. No more long hours at the diner.” Kylie was dearly trying to sell her idea right now. ”What I’m suggesting is to turn the diner into a uh… what’s those shits called? Um…” She tapped her chin and thought for a moment about the word she was trying to use. Those years of high school were so far behind her, and she had trouble remembering basic vocabulary. ”A niche market! That’s the word!” the mess of a woman exclaimed. ”Transform the business into a specialty diner and only open for like… 4 hours? You, Riley, what’s your specialty?” Kylie asked her brother, actually sounding somewhat business-like.

Not really believing the words coming out of his twin’s mouth, Riley was stunned for a round, perplexed and bewildered. Shaking his head in disbelief, he responded, ”Uh...I guess brunch? Since I make it all the time for you all.” Was four hours enough for a diner to be open daily? He wasn’t the most business savvy guy but if this could give him more free time, that would be amazing.

”Okay there you go. Work off that. Establish hours at like… 9 to 1 or something, then you guys have the whole flippin’ day to do what you want. What’s more is that since we already have an established clientele, we will still make money. Hell, we might make more money since we’re not throwing shit out every day. It’s basic economics. Supply and demand, bitches.” Kylie finished up and sat there with an accomplished expression on her face. She had this in the bag. If this had been a job interview or something, the twin was positive she would have gotten the job.

”I’ll leave the decision making to you, Sophi. But damn, I would love to be home before midnight.” With hope in his eyes, he looked at his older sister and waited for her response.

Sophia listened to her sister’s proposal, astonished that she would have thought of such a thing. She would have expected something like this from James, but certainly not Kylie. Perhaps smoking weed actually helped her brain functions. “Well…” Looking at Riley and Kylie’s faces, how could she say no? Ultimately the decision would be hers, as the business went to her after their parents death. “I would love some free time too but…” She paused, her eyes meeting James. This wasn’t what their parents had in mind in the beginning of things, but with the current situation it was probably best. “What do you think, James? You’re the business major.”

@Saint Girralo@Emma@BilboTheGreat

James didn't notice that Olivia had texted him back until right after he texted Nathan. ‘I love you too. Thanks Jamie, I really needed you to say that. Thank God I have one normal sibling. I don’t want to be like Kylie, I just said that because I am stupid. I was being really dumb. Sorry. ’ He smiled at Olivia's text. Of course she used that nickname, but it didn't bother him, in fact he preferred it over his actual name, though there was still another name in mind he liked even more. Just as he finished reading the text for the third time, Olivia came into the living room and sat down in front of their Dad's old chair. He got up from where their mother usually sat on the sofa and walked over to Olivia and sat down next to her. "I figured you didn't quite mean everything you said in the text. Just understand if you want to talk about it, I'm here for you and so are they."

And then they started saying and doing things that shouldn't be done in front of young company, and James quickly covered Olivia's ear, and glared at Riley, until Sophia pointed out that Olivia was indeed present in the room. It was at that point when Riley pulled out Angel, that stupid beanie baby bear thing from years back. He honestly couldn't care less about that old thing and the rule made by their father regarding it and talking during family meets. It had hardly worked back then, but with the topic changed, his hands came off of Olivia's ears. He sighed as he processed everything, especially the idea Kylie came up with, but would it work? That was the question at the forefront of his mind. It would certainly be nice to have the extra time, but the next question would be what would he do with the extra time. Finish school obviously. You wouldn't be running yourself ragged trying to do everything if that actually works out. Besides you do need to take care of yourself. You could just take some time off. he thought to himself. Address the first things first.

James stood up and started with, "First of all, Kylie is right, she shouldn't have been left to figure things out on her own, but at the same time, so are you Sophia. Kylie it is a restaurant it should be common sense not to serve people biscuits that have glass in them, that's forgetting about the fact that means it was on the floor with the glass to begin with. The five second rule was completely disproved by Mythbusters, it has no merit whatsoever. Secondly, does Riley even have the authority to fire anyone outside the kitchen, I mean waiters, waitresses, and hosts are kinda my group and Kylie is a waitress. Third, I've got to say Kylie, I'm actually pretty impressed and I'm surprised you actually know those words being behind your computer screen nearly twenty hours a day. But as far as turning the diner into a niche market to save money. It might work, I have to go over our records. See what time if any, we make the most money, and if I see something significant enough, maybe. You all have to understand, I'm being taught how to do the paperwork, and how to look at the numbers. Besides, I was going to take the next couple of semesters off to put the extra time into the diner. That would also take some of the load off you two." he said glancing to Sophia and Riley. "I suppose we're lucky we won't have to think about the fact that we'll have to fire a lot of people who have been very loyal to us and our parents if we're going to turn the Queen's Orchid to a niche market. Besides us, we'd definitely keep Ron and another cook at most. And maybe one waiter or waitress. I'll have to look over the employee files as well. But that is not something I can answer today, definitely not right this second."

James then looked down to his phone which had just vibrated, and saw a text from Nathan, "Closed Diner? What is this? Twilight Zone? You're free today? What? Who are you and what have you done to James? JK. Text me when and where and I'll be there. XOXO" James quickly shot back, 'I honestly don't know. I've never expected to get this far, good thing I wasn't asking you out on a date or I'd really be in trouble. XD Looking up from his phone, he added, "I also don't have time right this minute to go and look all that stuff up. A lot of it is back at the diner anyway, and I'm going out tonight. And before you get any ideas, just hanging out with Nathan. I haven't had time to get a date with carrying all of you all the time, but to be honest, I'd rather hire extra hands then cut hours." He said jokingly at the end, sitting back down next to Olivia.

@The Muse @lovely complex @Viciousmarrow @Emma @BilboTheGreat@karamonnom

Nathan got out of the shower and was figuring out what to wear. He had a towel wrapped around his waist as he walked over to his closet. He ended up deciding to wear basic blue jeans with a white shirt and a red flannel. "It is just James after all," he chuckled to himself. The thought of James reminded Nathan that he should check his phone for a reply.

"I honestly don't know. I've never expected to get this far, good thing I wasn't asking you out on a date or I'd really be in trouble. XD"

It made sense that James wouldn't have an idea of where to hang out. He probably hasn't been to places outside of the diner, his home, and the university in like forever. Nathan tried to think of a good place to hang out. He wasn't in the mood for pizza or Italian again. He didn't want to go to the amusement park where he worked, mainly because he did work there. James probably wouldn't like the idea of going to a strip club... though maybe he should ask just in case... Nah... Better not. They could catch a movie, but Nathan wasn't feeling it and nothing good was on that he hadn't already seen yet. Maybe it would be best for Nathan to just meet up with James and figure it out from there.

"Please. I'm pretty much the closest thing you got to a girlfriend, so you better treat me right. :P Let's just meet in the heart of town, in front of the mall. We'll figure it out from there," Nathan texted back.

Then he realized that they haven't established a time yet. "What time?" he added.

As he waited for his friend to reply so they can continue to make plans, he decided to do homework of all things. He figured if James wanted to go right now, he could easily stop doing homework and if James was going set a later time, then at least he'll be productive until then. He opened up his English textbook and flipped to page 105. He groaned at the sight of the title. It wasn't even an actual story this time. It was an article about Ernest Hemingway, who was a cool dude but still. He was beginning to hope that James was free right now so he could have a more valid reason to ditch reading it.

@Saint Girralo

_{Collab with @Themerlinhawk and @lovely complex}

Jerry cleaned his hands as he surveyed the front room. Most of the boxes had been unpacked and there wasn’t all that much more to do. The majority of the process had been taken up home to get the gun safe into his bedroom. It had been an interesting ordeal but he and the movers had managed to wrangle it into his closet.

Sitting at his table Jerry looked across the street, it was probably a good idea to go see his neighbors but at the same time. Jerry stared at his phone; it was probably safe to call Nana now. Resisting for another moment Jerry finally flipped open his phone and scrolled down to Nana’s number and hit call on it. The neighbors could wait, maybe Nana and Jude would be interested joining him for lunch tomorrow as the kitchen had been refurbished after Jerry had bought the house.

Jerry’s phone rang as he waited patiently to see if Nana would pick up; if not he could always leave a voicemail.

Observing her son as he ate baked spaghetti and watched Count von Count on the show, Sesame Street, Nana looked at her work schedule on her phone. Her next day off would be on Monday, she sighed at the thought. Scrolling down through her memo, she smiled when she went to Thursday. Thursdays were her favorite days of the week. It was when she taught two one hour classes at the gym from 6PM to 8PM and Jude got to play with some of his friend in the gym daycare. People would come to discover the mother was quite fit and in shape, even with such a hectic schedule being a full time mother, a morning maid, and other extra curricular activities. Jumping a little in her seat, her phone rang loudly making her son glance over.

”Who is it mommy?”

To her surprise, it was an unknown number… could it be him? He wouldn’t call her this fast would he? It’s not like she minded, but she almost died from a heart attack because she didn’t expect a call so soon. No one ever called her at this time.

”Mommy doesn’t know yet, sweetie. I’ll be in the hallway. Call me if you need me. Remember to chew your food.”

The little boy nodded as he watched his mom get up and walk out of the dining room. Grinning devilishly, he dug his hands into his food and began playing with it. He even began mimicking the Count as his fingers slapped spaghetti on the table, ”Ah! That’s one. One bat! Two. Two bat! Three. Three fabulous flyers! Ahaha…”

Staring at the number, Nana took a deep breath in and then exhaled. Answering the call, she brought the phone to her ear and said softly, ”Hello? Nana Darling speaking.”

Jerry raised an eyebrow in surprise that he’d caught her. That and she was picking up an unknown number. Personally he always screened them through his voicemail first but he was glad she’d picked up. Back in his chair near his bay window Jerry watched the neighbor’s house across the street. ”Hey, this is Jerry. I wanted to call and tell you I’m sorry our lunch got interrupted. Turns out my neighbors were behind all the fun at the mall today. Sorry if I called a bit soon, I’m not sure what the socially correct length of time to wait before calling a woman who gave you her number is.”

Jerry cringed a little, hopefully this wasn’t too awkward.

Leaning her back up against the wall, the mother attentively listened. Her eyes caught sight of dust on one of her framed pictures of Jude on the wall. Using her shirt (since it was going to be washed tonight anyways), she lifted it up revealing her thin, fit stomach and wiped the bottom edge of the frame. Letting out a light, pleasant giggle, she reassured the officer, ”Oh don’t worry about it. I don’t know when it’s socially correct to do some things too. You’re actually the first man I gave my number to on Day 1.”

Pausing briefly, she came to the realization that her entire time here in Millington, she refused quite a handful of men, ”Now that I think about it… maybe the only man I’ve given my number to...” Nana blushed at the thought. Did she really deny that many men her number? Her boss only had her number because it was on file but whenever a guy asked her for her digits… she usually gave an excuse and ran away. Changing the subject and still a little red in the face, Nana sweetly purred, ”Oh, those kids are your neighbors? That should lead to some interesting times.”

Leaning forward onto his table Jerry propped up his head tilting it slightly, it would have been too strange to have a set out binoculars so he’d settled for just doing some extended peering at the neighbors houses. In reality it was a nosy thing so much as an exercise in trying to figure stuff out about the neighbors. ”Well I’m certainly flattered by that, I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t a little surprised too but I’m certainly glad you did. I know almost no one here frankly. Just got the last of the unpacking done...more or less.” Jerry turned and looked over his shoulder at the last few boxes carefully stacked beside the entrance to the hallway.

”So I hope this isn’t premature but I was thinking maybe you and Jude would like to come over at some point this weekend or next week and let me make dinner or lunch. Since our lunch got interrupted at the mall.” Jerry tensed waiting for the potential rejections. It was a bit of a long shot but he might as well push just a little and see what she was okay with. Nana had seemed relaxed enough at the mall but Jerry got the impression that their might be history to go along with the kid at a young age.

Taking in his offer, Nana thought about how she should answer him. Having come to realize how little she accepted men’s numbers made her think she was some kind of prude, who didn’t know how to live. Lifting her right leg and pressing it against the other wall, the mother began to stretch it.

Hm. How should she answer? If she said no… nothing about her life would change. If she said yes… who knows what would happen? He did invite her child as well, so that did show he respected her to some degree. Not wanting there to be too long of dead silence, the mother joked, ”If I came over for dinner, Jude and I might have to sleepover. His bedtime is at 8.” She could do lunch at his house on Monday. She knew her son would appreciate seeing Depuhtee again. Quickly, the woman lifted her other leg and held herself up in the air, in her hallway. What are you going to decide Nana? What are the chances he is a cruel man, who just wants to fuck you? Then again… quite a few men, she felt, viewed her as a sexual object. Men could be terrible creatures and none of them should be trusted wholeheartedly.

Finally answering the officer, the mother began twirling her untidy hair with her pointer finger while up against both walls, ”Nights are usually bad for me. Being a working mother and all, I get kinda tuckered out. How about Monday, lunch? Jude has a nut allergy, so no peanut butter or any of that!”

Jerry smiled and resisted the urge to let out a sigh of relief. Given that he was still on the phone with her it might come across as sort of silly. With a quick rock onto his feet Jerry stood walking towards his fridge where his grocery list was. ”Okay two more questions, these ones are easier I promise His smile shone through in his tone. It was a surprise he’d made it this far; what was a bigger surprise was that he was enjoying this. ”What is an acceptable lunch for you and Jude? I know he’s a bit young and I get that they can be picky so I can make just about anything. Also if you have a preference I can always make something that caters to both your tastes since I am asking you to haul the little guy over here on your day off. So the food should be enjoyable for you too.”

Taking down the grocery list he leaned onto the counter supporting himself with his arms before shifting and taking his gun off his gun belt and setting it onto the counter. The top of the firearm had been digging into his side. Releasing the triple retention lock on it her carefully removed the magazine and pulled the slide back. Locking it back he set the bullet that was in the chamber down on the counter. It was probably best to put away any and all guns for Monday since Jude accidentally hurting himself would have been a terrible thing to happen on the first date. Jerry paused. Was it a date? Best not to put the cart before the horse and simply leave it at lunch.

Nana kept one ear attentive to the direction her son was in, just in case something went astray. The next question was easy, as she brought herself down from the air and began pacing back and forth in the hallway, ”Surprisingly, he’s not that picky. He does, however, like to make deals to get junk food over more healthy choices. You’ll come to learn… he is constantly plotting for treats. My little mastermind. Hm, lets see. He loves broccoli, but hates carrots. Hard to hide carrots in a meal unless it’s mashed well. I try to make his meals simple so if you have a 5 star lunch in mind, deduct it… by a lot. If it doesn’t look gross, he’ll eat it. Granted, you can easily get around that by promising him a treat. I don’t mind what you make, so surprise me! But no eggplant, please please please. I hate that stuff.” Even if this was a date, the mother would be oblivious on the matter. She didn’t necessarily understand how it felt being courted. This was simply a lunch outing with someone her son took a liking to. Looking down the hall, toward the dining room, she wondered if she should check on her mischief maker… things were quiet. Too quiet.

”Last thing and then I’m sure you need to go since no doubt you’ve been distracted sufficiently long for Jude to start getting into trouble. I am going to do a BBQ at some point here for the people I’ve met, a few of my co-workers and probably my neighbors if they don’t show up here drunk or high. Which if they do I’ll be throwing them out.” Jerry mentally berated himself for adding such an unnecessary detail since he was trying to sell the BBQ idea. I was wondering if maybe you and Jude wanted to come and balance out the crazy with some normal. Otherwise I’ll be stuck here with off duty cops and angsty neighbors.” Jerry mentally sighed. Well he’d probably blown that one. ”Given how I just pitched that I’d understand if you told me no thank you.”

With that he began writing down items on his grocery list. Finding himself not wanting to end the call but knowing that it was probably drawing to a close what with her probably needing to get going. After all it was pushing the end of her day off. Well it had at least been worth the offer.

Off duty cops? Angsty neighbors? The woman crept down the hallway, slowly approaching the dining room but not looking just yet. Nana gave him a reassuring laugh, to not be so hard on himself, ”That sounds way better than snobby rich people, who don’t know how to clean up after themselves. Ah, yeah. I’m a maid…” She was a little embarrassed revealing her main paying job, since cleaning houses and wearing an uncomfortable outfit to get more in tip money was nothing to be proud about. Smiling at his attempts, the mother didn’t mind listening to his voice. Giving an unintentional flirtatious compliment, she grinned, ”I like an honest man who takes care of business. If I had the strength and even bothered throwing a party, I’d kick out the problem starters!” Nana wasn’t necessarily a weak woman, but she didn’t want him to find her unattractive for being extremely prepared to break a man’s nose or kick him in his… you know.

Finishing her response, she added, ”Text me the day when you figure it out and I’ll let you know if we can make it.” Finally, she peered into the dining room and her eyes widened. Spaghetti was all over her table...floor… and her son.

”JUDE!”

Sheepishly, the boy turned and looked at his mother with big, innocent eyes, ”Mommy, I think it’s bathtime.”

”Uh, Jerry.” Saying him by his nickname rather than Jeremiah slipped from her lips, ”I-I have to go. Remember to text me the info! Thanks for inviting me. You’re too nice.” and with that the woman hung up and went to deal with her little adorable… messy monster.

With a grin and a small laugh he flipped the phone around and sent her a quick text. Good luck battling the destruction, sorry I distracted you long enough for the little guy to get into trouble. With that Jerry finished up his list and looked out the front window. Eyeing his gun he contemplated; was it worth bringing it with him? With a shrug he picked it up, reloaded it and reloaded the magazine before putting it in the small handgun safe he’d put in his entryway closet. clipping his star and ASP to his belt he opened the front door and started across the street.

Had she called him Jerry? A thought struck him as he was walking. Was that a good thing? With a shrug and a smile he decided it was.

Walking up to the door of the house across from him he inhaled slowly before reaching up and knocking. Hopefully this went well. It seemed like Millington was one of those towns that looked normal from the outside but once you were in the thick of it; it dawned on you how crazy it actually was.

@Athinar

Olivia pulled her knees to her chest as she waited for the family meeting to start. James came to sit by her, and she nodded in reply to him and then sweetly rested her head on his shoulder. Riley stood in front of everyone, and then James covered Olivia’s ears as Riley started pelvic thrusting into the air. Unfortunately just a tad too late, as Olivia heard Kylie’s comment about Claire being an easy slut. It seemed like a jab at Olivia’s virginity status, not the Kylie knew anything about that. As far as anyone was concerned, Olivia was still a pure innocent little girl. Shame and self-hate filled her mind. She bit her bottom lip and stared down at the floor. Kylie was kind of right, it was basically her fault that He had done that to her, she had to be asking for it in some way like a slut right? She wondered if she should just tell everyone the truth right now. What would they all think, what would they do?

She remained silent as she looked back up at Riley, and buried the thought of speaking up inside her heart. Olivia raised her eyebrows at Riley, just like their mother always did when she wanted Rye to stop with the pervert stuff. When Riley pulled out the old beanie baby, Olivia smiled remembering their parents happily bringing it out for family meetings and peace talks between bickering siblings. James uncovered her ears, since the mischief seemed to be over. She fidgeted with the end of her left braid as she always did anytime she was feeling anxious or nervous. Riley began the summery of today’s terrible events. She was not really listening, but he caught her attention with two words... ”Elliot’s Back”. She lifted her head from James’s shoulder and listened for more information.

Elliot Longstreet had lived on their block her whole life up until about five years ago when he vanished. He had been Sophia’s best friend, and Olivia’s first crush. In fact she remembered asking Elliot to marry her when she was five years old. She had been dressed in a juice stained Cinderella costume and a plastic tiara, when she handed Elliot a bundle of flowers she picked out of her mom’s garden. “When I grow up will you marry me?” She had asked giving him puppy eyes and hugging his leg. Olivia’s cheeks turned red for a split second remembering her embarrassing past. She had been completely infatuated with Elliot when she was little, and spent a good amount off her childhood following him and Sophia around the neighborhood on her pink hello kitty bike. The one Elliot had taught her to ride without training wheels when she was six. As long as she was not annoying Sophia, she was usually welcomed along on their tween adventures, typically riding piggy back on Elliot.

Then Riley explained their mother’s medical marijuana use to Olivia, and she just glanced over at Kylie rather peeved. She sighed looking back at Riley who still had the beanie baby, though no one seemed to be respecting the beanie baby talking rule. The idea of changing the diner in anyway hurt her inside. It was their parents dream. She understood they were under a lot of stress, and it was a burden but she didn’t want anything else to change, too much had already.

Olivia wished she could help her family more. She wished that she was older and could take over the diner and stop being a burden to her older siblings. Their lives were on hold all because she was too young to legally take care of herself. They should be starting their lives and doing what they pleased without worry. Their mom had been so proud when they got accepted to college, and Mom would gush about her early twenties. She would talk about how she backpacked through Europe with her friends, joined a sorority, how she met Dad at a Duran Duran concert in California, and then they joined the Peace Corps straight out of college. Dad had his stories too, about his time before marriage and babies. He always talked about how he got his pilot license; how he was a bar tender in Vegas, that one time he sat next to Cindy Crawford on a flight to Australia for a surfing competition, and he would talk about the summer when he and his friends followed their favorite band on tour all across the west coast.

Olivia said nothing though; as she let her siblings make the decision about the diner.