I got out of the car, extremely confident. As soon as I closed the door, my mom smacked on the brakes and she bolted out of the neighborhood. I grabbed my bag and walked up to the door. Before I could knock on the door, however, a girl with curly black hair that went down to her shoulder and dazzling blue eyes yanked the door open.
"Who the hell are you?" she snapped.
"I'm Anna. I'm looking for James Smith. I have reason to believe she's here. Is that true?" I asked.
"Why do you want him?" she asked.
"My mom wants me to talk to him," I said, not untruthful, but not saying the whole truth, either. She eyed me very suspiciously.
"I'll get him," she said, and she disappeared behind the door. A minute later a guy with sleek black hair and green eyes appeared in the door.
"Anna?" he asked.
"Yes. I've come here to stay for a while," I said.
"Why? Is something wrong?" he asked.
"No. But my mom seems to think meeting the person who cheated on her will help," I said.
"What exactly did she tell you about our breakup?" he asked.
"She said that she caught you cheating and you said that for all you cared she and I could go to hell, and then you left," I said honestly.
"That's not what happened," he said.
"Then what's your version?" I asked.
"I caught her cheating, a week later she caught me cheating. We called it truce and we stayed together. Then she got pregnant with you. One day she told me that she was leaving me for someone else. When I asked who, she said, 'The guy you caught me with.' When I asked if I could have you, she said no and made sure I would never get a glimpse of you," he said. He opened the door and I took a step inside. There was a black, fancy staircase that was on the right. On the left, farthest from me, was a brown bookcase. The walls were also brown. They had a long brown couch that was pushed up against the wall. There was a white and black table in front of the couch. On the other side of the table, was a brown 'ice cream sandwich' seat. On the sides of the table were brown living room chairs. In the corners of the room was brown table with lights on them.
"This is Jessica, your step-mom," my dad said, pointing at the girl who opened the door, who was now sitting on the stairs. All of a sudden, from somewhere upstairs, a loud wail came out. Jessica ran up the stairs, followed by my dad. Curious, I followed. The walls were green. There was a brown-lined bed with a white dresser underneath. There was two pillows on the bed. The one on top was orange, while the one underneath was white, green, and pink. The pillow underneath matched the blanket, while the pillow on top matched the sheets. There was shelves on one side of the room, and pictures next to it. On the other side of the bed, was a wide window. On the side closer to me, was a plain wooden table. Two toddlers sat on the floor. They were between the table and bed. They were pressed against the wall. They looked around the age of 2. The one closest to the wall was screaming it's head off. It's mouth was so wide open, it's jaw probably was unhinged liked a snake. Jessica picked up the screaming kid and tried to calm it down. My dad picked up the other kid.
"Jacob, you're supposed to be in your room," my dad said, not taking his eyes off the kid he was holding.
"What's wrong, Andrew?" Jessica asked her kid.
"Jacob hit me!" Jessica's kid, Andrew, wailed.
"Jacob!" my dad shouted. Jacob, the kid in my dad's arms, started to cry, too.
"Can I try something?" I asked my dad. He nodded. Jessica looked like she was going to protest, but she must've decided against it, because she didn't say anything. My dad handed me Jacob. I positioned him so his face was facing behind me. I decided to sing a song.
Hush little baby, don't say a word
Mama's gonna buy you a mockingbird
If that mocking bird won't sing,
Mama's gonna buy you a diamond ring
If that diamond ring turns brass,
Mama's gonna buy you a looking glass
If that looking glass gets broke,
Mama's gonna buy you a billy goat
If that billy goat won't pull,
The toddlers stopped crying to listen to my song.
Mama's gonna buy you a cart and bull
If that cart and bull turn over,
Mama's gonna buy you a dog named Rover
If that dog named Rover won't bark,
Mama's gonna buy you a horse and cart
If that cart and horse fall down,
You'll still be the sweetest boy in town
Jessica scoffed and made a face as if she would've thought of that. My dad beamed.
"That was great! What a beautiful voice you have!" he said.
"Thank you. My mom taught me how to sing," I said.
"I think it's time for Jacob to go back to his own room. You can put him there if you like," my dad said. Again, Jessica looked like she was going to protest, but didn't.
"That's okay. I don't know where his room his, anyway," I said.
"Come on, I'll show you!" he said, and he strut out of the room. Unsure of what else to do, I followed him. In the hall, my dad went to the right. He stopped at the second door we passed, opened the door, and walked in. This room was tan colored. There was a window on the farthest wall, but it was covered by blue curtains. There was a wooden desk and chair that was against the left wall. The bed was on the right wall close to the window. The bed was in the shape of a boat. It had red pillows and blankets. There were pictures on the walls. Above the desk was a sign that said, "BEACH HOUSE" on it. There was a blue rug on the floor near the door. I set Jacob on the bed.
"Are these my step-brothers?" I asked my dad. He nodded.
"How old?" I asked.
"Andrew is 2, Jacob is 3," he said. My dad left the room, and before I could close the door, Jacob screamed, "Don't go!" and ran to the door. He clung to my legs, tightly.
"Oh, but I have to go! How would your mother feel if I stayed here all day?" I asked.
"Sad," Jacob answered.
"My point. So I have to go," I said. Jacob let go of my legs and laid on the bed. I closed the door and walked back downstairs. There was a knock at the door.
"Anna! Can you get that?!" my dad shouted from downstairs.
"Sure!" I called, imagining the look on Jessica's face if it was one of her friends at the door. I opened the door. It revealed a guy around my age, with dark black hair and really distracting blue eyes. For some reason, he was wearing a tux.