CH 14- Surprise Visits
Theresa sighed and glanced at the clock by her bed.
3:45 pm
"Oh my god, I am never going to finish this paper for school." She whispered to herself.
She was supposed to have finished it by now, but every time she tried something always came up; first her problems with Ethan and then dealing with the catastrophe at Fox's party. She had even made up her mind to stay at home all day yesterday to finally complete it. But Whitney, Sheridan, and Gwen had insisted on taking her out for an afternoon at the mall. Then Fox had come over and well she definitely didn't have the energy to do anything after that.
Theresa smiled to herself as she remembered their night together.
She didn't even get to spend the quality time with Paloma that she had promised. By the time she and the rest of the family had gotten home, Theresa was out like a light.
"And now it's 3:45 in the afternoon, and I've gotten nothing done!" She let out a heavy sigh and stared at her blank computer screen.
She rubbed her temples as she felt a slight headache developing.
"Come on Theresa think!" She silently ordered herself. "You have got to finish this!"
She sat there for a few minutes and stared at the screen, almost hoping that the words would magically appear.
Suddenly she heard a light knock on her door.
"Come in!" She called.
"Hey sis, you busy?" Paloma poked her head in the doorway.
"I'm never too busy for my baby sister," Theresa winked at her.
"Hey c'mon sis," Paloma frowned at her. "I'm not a baby anymore. I'm eighteen years old and that's far from being a little kid."
"I know, I'm just teasing." Theresa made a face. "It's just that the last time I remember seeing you, you were this tall!"
She drew her hand down to her knee level and smiled up at her.
"I guess it has been a long time," Paloma laughed flopping on the bed. "Well now is our chance to catch up!"
She patted a spot in front of her for her sister to sit.
Theresa smiled but slightly frowned, looking back at her still blank screen.
"Arggghh! I guess a little break won't do that much harm," she giggled joining Paloma on the bed.
"So what have you been up to?" Paloma asked, grabbing a nearby pillow.
"My gosh!" Theresa laughed. "Where should I begin?"
She started from the beginning and told Paloma everything about her involvement with Ethan. She even told her about the time when Gwen had tried to kill her with a bat! From the time she spilled blue paint on Ethan's head, to his recent discovery of not being a Crane, Theresa told her sister about her entire past with the man that she once loved and still kept dear to her heart. As much as it hurt, she even confessed the part that she played in her and Ethan's sudden breakup. She felt her sister had a right to know about the mistake she had made of keeping Ethan's paternity a secret and allowing Julian to take advantage of her.
"That pig!" Paloma spat. "Papa always use to say that the Cranes were never people to be trusted. Now I know why."
"Yup, and they've done much worst things than what Julian did to me." Theresa seriously looked at her. "That is why you should never get involved with Julian or any of the Cranes. They're just plain poison!"
Paloma nodded obediently but slowly looked up at Theresa with a confused expression her face.
"What is it?" She asked her.
"Well, I'm confused." She paused. "Sheridan's a Crane and Luis is involved with her. And that boy that you introduced to me yesterday, Fox, isn't he a Crane also? How come you're friends with him?"
Theresa bit her bottom lip, knowing that the situation was complicated.
"Well, it doesn't really count for Sheridan. She has always proven to be nothing like the rest of her family. She's loving, caring, and the sweetest person you could ever meet. Besides, you know how much Luis hates the Cranes. Do you actually think that he would be with Sheridan if she weren't such a good person?"
"I guess not!" Paloma giggled. "But what about Fox?"
"Fox," the sound of his name instantly making her smile. "He's definitely one of the good guys. Fox came to Harmony not too long ago, but he has proven on more than one occasion that he is definitely someone to be trusted."
"You two seemed really close when I came by yesterday." She recalled. "So I guess you guys must be really good friends, right?"
Theresa paused and nervously looked in the air. She didn't want to tell Paloma the truth about her and Fox, since no one really knew about their recent involvement. She thought for now it would be best to keep it a secret, knowing that it would most likely come as a shock to everyone.
"Yeah, Fox and I are great friends. He's really funny and sweet. It's sometimes even hard to believe that he's a Crane."
"Well I hope that you and Ethan work out your problems. From the way that you told me about the past that you two shared, it's obvious that you still care for him."
Knowing it in her heart, Theresa just smiled at her.
Suddenly she noticed Paloma's expression change.
"What's wrong?" Theresa worriedly asked her.
"I just suddenly realized how much I missed having a big sister around." Paloma's eyes shone with tears. "When I was in Mexico, I never really had anyone to talk to about boys and love. I mean I still had my friends, but they were all my age and knew as much as I knew, which wasn't that much."
She stared off into the distance and then continued.
"I'm eighteen now, and I've had to learn so much on my own. I just wish that I had a big sister to talk to all those years."
Theresa felt tears run down her face as she looked at her saddened sister.
"Oh Paloma, I'm so sorry that I wasn't there with you."
"There were times when I used to be so angry at mama for sending me to Mexico. I thought that she loved you three more than she loved me. I didn't understand why out of all of us, I had to be the one who got sent away. I didn't want to even come back because I thought nobody in Harmony cared about me."
"Paloma, you know that's not true! We love you very much and we always missed you!" Theresa placed a hand on hers. "There wasn't a day that went by that we never thought about you. We always wished that you were here with us in Harmony."
"I know that now Theresa. But back then I didn't have anyone to tell me otherwise so it was easy for me to think that." Paloma explained.
"Well that thinking stops now!" Theresa pulled her in for a hug. "From now on, we are going to be spending so much time together! We will make up for all the time that we lost."
"Oh, I'm so glad you said that!" Paloma grinned. "Since I've come back, I've been dying to see the sights of Harmony and now you can take me!"
"You mean right now?" Theresa frowned and stared back at her computer. "Oh, Paloma I can't! I have this huge paper to write and if I don't finish it I'm going to fail my class."
"Can't you write it later?" She looked at her with puppy-dog eyes.
Theresa was just about to cry with frustration when she heard her door knock.
"Come in!" She called.
"Hey beautiful, do you want to go for a walk?" Fox poked his handsome head in.
Theresa's face lit up when she saw him.
"Hey you," she smiled. "I'd love to go for a walk with you but I can't right now."
"Why not?" He frowned coming into the room.
"I have this paper to write for my fashion class and if I don't finish it, I have a good chance of failing." She sadly looked up at him.
"Can't you write it later?" He looked at her with the same puppy-dog eyes.
"Oh no, not you too!" She laughed.
She stood up and looked from Fox to Paloma.
"Ok, here's what we'll do. Paloma, you want to see the sights of Harmony right?" She looked over at her. "And Fox, you want to take a walk. Well since I can't go with either of you, why don't you two go together? It'll give you a chance to get to know each other and I can finish my paper!"
They just stood there for a moment and looked at her with blank expressions.
"What's the matter? C'mon it'll be fun!" She grabbed Paloma with one hand and placed the other on Fox's back. "You guys will have a blast, and you can tell me all about it when you get home!"
She didn't even let them respond, as she gently pushed them out the door.
"Have fun!" She smiled as she closed the door behind them.
After a few seconds had passed she poked her head out to make sure they had gone downstairs.
"Finally!" She said out loud, closing the door. "Now maybe I can finish this thing."
She sat down at the computer and almost instantly began typing. After a few minutes, she heard a knock at her door once more.
"Arrggghh!" She reluctantly got up, and turned the knob. "Fox I told you, you will have fu—"
When she opened the door, she almost gasped in shock at the person standing before her.
"Ethan!"
Theresa sighed and glanced at the clock by her bed.
3:45 pm
"Oh my god, I am never going to finish this paper for school." She whispered to herself.
She was supposed to have finished it by now, but every time she tried something always came up; first her problems with Ethan and then dealing with the catastrophe at Fox's party. She had even made up her mind to stay at home all day yesterday to finally complete it. But Whitney, Sheridan, and Gwen had insisted on taking her out for an afternoon at the mall. Then Fox had come over and well she definitely didn't have the energy to do anything after that.
Theresa smiled to herself as she remembered their night together.
She didn't even get to spend the quality time with Paloma that she had promised. By the time she and the rest of the family had gotten home, Theresa was out like a light.
"And now it's 3:45 in the afternoon, and I've gotten nothing done!" She let out a heavy sigh and stared at her blank computer screen.
She rubbed her temples as she felt a slight headache developing.
"Come on Theresa think!" She silently ordered herself. "You have got to finish this!"
She sat there for a few minutes and stared at the screen, almost hoping that the words would magically appear.
Suddenly she heard a light knock on her door.
"Come in!" She called.
"Hey sis, you busy?" Paloma poked her head in the doorway.
"I'm never too busy for my baby sister," Theresa winked at her.
"Hey c'mon sis," Paloma frowned at her. "I'm not a baby anymore. I'm eighteen years old and that's far from being a little kid."
"I know, I'm just teasing." Theresa made a face. "It's just that the last time I remember seeing you, you were this tall!"
She drew her hand down to her knee level and smiled up at her.
"I guess it has been a long time," Paloma laughed flopping on the bed. "Well now is our chance to catch up!"
She patted a spot in front of her for her sister to sit.
Theresa smiled but slightly frowned, looking back at her still blank screen.
"Arggghh! I guess a little break won't do that much harm," she giggled joining Paloma on the bed.
"So what have you been up to?" Paloma asked, grabbing a nearby pillow.
"My gosh!" Theresa laughed. "Where should I begin?"
She started from the beginning and told Paloma everything about her involvement with Ethan. She even told her about the time when Gwen had tried to kill her with a bat! From the time she spilled blue paint on Ethan's head, to his recent discovery of not being a Crane, Theresa told her sister about her entire past with the man that she once loved and still kept dear to her heart. As much as it hurt, she even confessed the part that she played in her and Ethan's sudden breakup. She felt her sister had a right to know about the mistake she had made of keeping Ethan's paternity a secret and allowing Julian to take advantage of her.
"That pig!" Paloma spat. "Papa always use to say that the Cranes were never people to be trusted. Now I know why."
"Yup, and they've done much worst things than what Julian did to me." Theresa seriously looked at her. "That is why you should never get involved with Julian or any of the Cranes. They're just plain poison!"
Paloma nodded obediently but slowly looked up at Theresa with a confused expression her face.
"What is it?" She asked her.
"Well, I'm confused." She paused. "Sheridan's a Crane and Luis is involved with her. And that boy that you introduced to me yesterday, Fox, isn't he a Crane also? How come you're friends with him?"
Theresa bit her bottom lip, knowing that the situation was complicated.
"Well, it doesn't really count for Sheridan. She has always proven to be nothing like the rest of her family. She's loving, caring, and the sweetest person you could ever meet. Besides, you know how much Luis hates the Cranes. Do you actually think that he would be with Sheridan if she weren't such a good person?"
"I guess not!" Paloma giggled. "But what about Fox?"
"Fox," the sound of his name instantly making her smile. "He's definitely one of the good guys. Fox came to Harmony not too long ago, but he has proven on more than one occasion that he is definitely someone to be trusted."
"You two seemed really close when I came by yesterday." She recalled. "So I guess you guys must be really good friends, right?"
Theresa paused and nervously looked in the air. She didn't want to tell Paloma the truth about her and Fox, since no one really knew about their recent involvement. She thought for now it would be best to keep it a secret, knowing that it would most likely come as a shock to everyone.
"Yeah, Fox and I are great friends. He's really funny and sweet. It's sometimes even hard to believe that he's a Crane."
"Well I hope that you and Ethan work out your problems. From the way that you told me about the past that you two shared, it's obvious that you still care for him."
Knowing it in her heart, Theresa just smiled at her.
Suddenly she noticed Paloma's expression change.
"What's wrong?" Theresa worriedly asked her.
"I just suddenly realized how much I missed having a big sister around." Paloma's eyes shone with tears. "When I was in Mexico, I never really had anyone to talk to about boys and love. I mean I still had my friends, but they were all my age and knew as much as I knew, which wasn't that much."
She stared off into the distance and then continued.
"I'm eighteen now, and I've had to learn so much on my own. I just wish that I had a big sister to talk to all those years."
Theresa felt tears run down her face as she looked at her saddened sister.
"Oh Paloma, I'm so sorry that I wasn't there with you."
"There were times when I used to be so angry at mama for sending me to Mexico. I thought that she loved you three more than she loved me. I didn't understand why out of all of us, I had to be the one who got sent away. I didn't want to even come back because I thought nobody in Harmony cared about me."
"Paloma, you know that's not true! We love you very much and we always missed you!" Theresa placed a hand on hers. "There wasn't a day that went by that we never thought about you. We always wished that you were here with us in Harmony."
"I know that now Theresa. But back then I didn't have anyone to tell me otherwise so it was easy for me to think that." Paloma explained.
"Well that thinking stops now!" Theresa pulled her in for a hug. "From now on, we are going to be spending so much time together! We will make up for all the time that we lost."
"Oh, I'm so glad you said that!" Paloma grinned. "Since I've come back, I've been dying to see the sights of Harmony and now you can take me!"
"You mean right now?" Theresa frowned and stared back at her computer. "Oh, Paloma I can't! I have this huge paper to write and if I don't finish it I'm going to fail my class."
"Can't you write it later?" She looked at her with puppy-dog eyes.
Theresa was just about to cry with frustration when she heard her door knock.
"Come in!" She called.
"Hey beautiful, do you want to go for a walk?" Fox poked his handsome head in.
Theresa's face lit up when she saw him.
"Hey you," she smiled. "I'd love to go for a walk with you but I can't right now."
"Why not?" He frowned coming into the room.
"I have this paper to write for my fashion class and if I don't finish it, I have a good chance of failing." She sadly looked up at him.
"Can't you write it later?" He looked at her with the same puppy-dog eyes.
"Oh no, not you too!" She laughed.
She stood up and looked from Fox to Paloma.
"Ok, here's what we'll do. Paloma, you want to see the sights of Harmony right?" She looked over at her. "And Fox, you want to take a walk. Well since I can't go with either of you, why don't you two go together? It'll give you a chance to get to know each other and I can finish my paper!"
They just stood there for a moment and looked at her with blank expressions.
"What's the matter? C'mon it'll be fun!" She grabbed Paloma with one hand and placed the other on Fox's back. "You guys will have a blast, and you can tell me all about it when you get home!"
She didn't even let them respond, as she gently pushed them out the door.
"Have fun!" She smiled as she closed the door behind them.
After a few seconds had passed she poked her head out to make sure they had gone downstairs.
"Finally!" She said out loud, closing the door. "Now maybe I can finish this thing."
She sat down at the computer and almost instantly began typing. After a few minutes, she heard a knock at her door once more.
"Arrggghh!" She reluctantly got up, and turned the knob. "Fox I told you, you will have fu—"
When she opened the door, she almost gasped in shock at the person standing before her.
"Ethan!"