Tassi sat in her room planning her wonderful trip this summer. It was going to be so much fun. Her birthday is tomorrow, so she could send in her letter, life is great. Plus she has a totally hott guy to go with her. Her cell rang.
"Hello?"
"Is this a Tassia Scott?"
"Depends."
"This regards a Daniel and a Deborah Scott."
"Then yes it is, may I help you?"
"I have some bad news for you, it appears Mr. And Mrs. Scott were in a car accident recently this morning-"
"Are Uncle Danny and Aunt Debbie okay?"
"I'm sorry, they're gone, oh yes, you are on my other list, the Davis'"
"Yes, Grandma and Grandpa Davis?"
"They were in the other car, I'm sorry, they're also gone. The reading of Mr. And Mrs. Scott's will, will be on December the 26th at their house, at 4 'o' clock in the afternoon, can you attend?"
"Um, sure, do you need my parents there, you know my dad, or my sibs?"
"No, the list specifically says Tassia Scott, no other Scotts from anywhere are mentioned, unless you are a minor, then you will need a parent."
"No, by that date I will be 18, thank you, what about Grandma and Grandpa Davis?"
"Yes, the will reading will be directly after the funeral at the courthouse, again, no other Scotts or Davis' are on my list, that will be on the 28th."
"Thank You," Tassi said and hung up, in a fit of tears. She loved both sets of her grandparents, even though no one else really did. She then wondered what they left her, probably like a small inheritance of like $100 for college because she just met them a few months ago, not that they could really change that much in a short time. Tomorrow is Christmas, Christmas without them. For once she actually went upstairs to be with the family, though she was a mess.
The doorbell rang, and since she was there anyway, Tassi opened the door.
"What?" she said grouchily.
"Hey Scott, still running, even though it is cold?" Tassi looked up.
"Hey coach Davis, of course I've been running, I'm just out of it today, so what's up?"
"One, you're supposed to call me uncle Bradley outside of school remember and two is my lovely sister there."
"One it's way to weird and two how should I know, I only live here, you want to come in and look for her, be my guest, have fun," Tassi said leaving the door open and going to sit on the couch and watch TV.
Bradley walked in, shook his head and closed the door. He stopped at Tassi, "so Scott, is the only thing your good for running and causing havoc?"
"Yea, pretty much, you got issues with that, leave them in my suggestions box by the door, I'll get to you eventually." He gave her that look and she acted like she was for real, which scared him a bit. "Can I help you, cause if not, leave."
"Wow, attitude, nice girl, run it away, get off your lazy but and run it away."
"How about I box it up and you run it away for me."
"Funny, Scott, real funny, never knew you had a sense of humor."
"Great, maybe I should join the circus and become a clown."
"Sass, I'm telling you, you need to go running, let it go."
"Sorry, Coach Davis, watching TV, maybe later, now leave or I'll call the cops, you're harassing me."
"Jeez, don't have a heart attack, I'm leaving," he started walking into the kitchen, "I'm gone." Tassi flicked off the doorway where we went. Luckily he didn't see.
"So little sis, in a kitchen, I'm shocked."
"Brad, hey what do you want, and I'm only in here watching Luke and Ricky play in the backyard with Emmie."
"Yea, remember you met Jackie?"
"Yes, sweet girl."
"Great, so I'm kind of moving."
"Really where to?"
"Um, Russia."
"No Kidding."
"Yea, and Jackie is kind of against going."
"Really."
"Yea and her three older brothers are worthless and selfish."
"Well looks like you're not going."
"But I met this girl…"
"Always about a girl Brad."
"Please Brooke."
"Please what?"
"Take Jackie, please."
"Brad, I can't even believe you'd ask such a thing, but this is typical of you, you make a mess, run away, leave others to fend for your mistakes, you want to have fun, I have fun every day of my life, I haven't left my kids behind, and I never will."
"Brooke, I was having fun, then I lost her, okay, you didn't loose Luke, and I hope you don't, and now I have another chance at love and happiness and I want to take it, please Brooke, besides, how much worse could Jackie be than Tassi out there?"
"Good point, I have no clue what is wrong with that girl, fine, but I swear, Jackie better not be as bad as her or you will find her in a box on your doorstep."
"Got it sis, thank you, where do you want her stuff?"
"What?"
"I kind of have to catch m plane in two hours."
"God Brad, go get Luke and Ricky to help you bring in her stuff, I'll direct you, and try to pry Tassi off the couch to help."
"What about your other one, Dezzy?"
"No, she's, well she can't."
"Okay, sorry I asked, let's go."
"Great, Tassi get your sorry ass off that couch and come help."
"You wish, I'm kind of watching TV."
"Not no more you are," Brooke said unplugging it.
"Evil, you know that?"
"Yea, I do, ain't it great, now up, up, up." Tassi stood up and swayed a bit then walked to the backyard. Brooke rolled her eyes and looked at Brad. "Useless child, can't help it, I'll yell for Luke and Ricky when we get outside."
They walked outside and Brooke did just that, yelled for Luke and Ricky, and since Tassi was back there Emmie would be okay. They carried all Jackie's things to one of their many guest rooms. Then Brad left.
"So Jackie, you like this room?" Brooke said once Luke and Ricky went back outside, they didn't like being bothered.
"If I have to, now if you don't mind I'd like to unpack."
"Sure, call me if you need anything."
"Okay." Brooke left, thinking how could brad leave this girl.
Jackie first stripped the room, all pictures on the walls, sheets on the bed, everything, and put it in a box she unpacked by dumping it on the floor, and put it outside the door. She put her clothes in the closet and shelves, dresses and nice clothes in the closet, regular clothes in drawers, like jeans. The way it was in her old room. She put her drawings on the wall, the way it was in her room, until all the walls were collaged, and it looked messy. She made the bed with her sheets, black, she liked black. She put her rug on the floor. It was a skull. She then took out her music collection, on top of one of the tall dressers and stacked in a corner, recklessly. Scattered makeup on the smaller dresser with the mirror, eye shadow, eye liner, lip gloss. She was done within a few hours, it looked almost exactly like her old room. Brunette a couple months ago, now had black hair. She looked at the lamps in the room, no, real frilly, unplugged them and stuck them on top of the box, she put her own lamps into place and her black light above the door. It still wasn't right, even though it was her own room, something was missing. She looked around, no carpet, wood flooring. She looked to the ceiling, it was missing her Christmas lights, she always had Christmas lights on the ceiling, and searched her bag for them. Eventually she found them and started putting them up. Dezzy came and knocked on the door.
"Can I come in."
"Depends, what do you want?"
"You need any help?"
Jackie opened the door, "does it look like I need help?"
"No, I guess not, not that I'd be much help, but I thought I'd ask."
"Good, then leave." Jackie turned her back and started hanging the lights. Dezzy lingered in the doorway.
"Well if you need anything, I'm next door."
"I thought I told you to leave." Dezzy reluctantly left, not wanting to make her mad. Jackie turned around when she heard the door closed, and smiled, she would be the boss of this house. She hung the Christmas lights mixed in with her artwork on the ceilings and zigzagged on the wall. She remembered her candles then. They each smelled when you light them, and hunted in her bag for them, then stuck them on the window sill. She put the matches down next to the candles. She looked around and plugged in the Christmas lights, turned on the black light and lit the candles. What else did she need. She looked around. Hmm, the speakers, she needed to attach the speakers to the wall, they were spray painted by her silver with black stripes. She also tweaked them so they played better and louder. She started attaching them to the walls, moving a few drawings in the process. Then she attached them to her stereo system and tried it out, nice sound, you could hear it all the way down the street. That got Tassi mad and she went and ripped open Jackie's door.
"Listen cuz, you do not play garbage at ear popping decibels, in fact, only I am allowed to do that in this house. Another thing, don't touch my stuff, any of it, or go into my room, not that you can, tight security, thanks to Uncle Danny and Aunt Debbie," she shed a single tear, "so don't try it, I will know, and if I hear this junk again, I'm just going to take it and there ain't a thing you can do about it."
"You listen, and you listen good, I didn't ask to come here, I didn't ask my daddy to leave me here and chase after girls in a foreign country, and I don't want to be here, I want to be in my house, in my room, being me, but I can't cause I'm stuck here, so go screw yourself, cause I don't care, come to me when your parents have either died or abandoned you, and even then, I won't have sympathy for you."
"You know what you are, a spoiled brat princess, okay. You are spoiled, rotten, you get whatever the hell you want when you want, and if you don't you make everyone else's life hell until you get it, well newsflash, that is my job, I am the life wrecker around here, and I was here first, so find yourself a new hobby, like being quiet, or reading, or I don't care, just leave me alone, and be quiet."
"Yea, right, I will do whatever I want, whenever I want until my daddy has to come back and get me because I am uncontrollable."
"I don't care, my birthday is tomorrow, I will be 18, I don't care what you think of me, but if you ruin my birthday, I will ruin you."
"Is that a threat?"
"Yea, yes it is, better be careful, you never know what I'm capable of doing, only I do, better watch your back. You know the lovely Scotts, yea, I have their backing, along with the Davis', okay, something you don't have. I can get them to back me in whatever I want to do, since I am kind of the child of the couple that should never have been, they left them, I find them, they loved me, okay, so don't mess with power."
"Now who's the spoiled one, hmm you are, having the Scotts and the Davis' money, come on."
"No, you are definitely spoiled and um, lemme think, acting like a baby, throwing a fit until you get what you want, I stopped that when I was what, five, come on, B.S. you're daddy ain't coming, and nothing you do is going to bring him back, deal with it, at least I have people who want me, lemme think, I had four lovely grandparents, and my parents, and all of my siblings, then your daddy, my coach, my boyfriend, my friends, and who do you have, well, your daddy doesn't want you, your mommy doesn't want you, your brothers don't want you, um I don't want you, who does?"
"Get out."
"What is that, telling me to get out of a room of my own house, yea, this isn't your house, you're staying here, in a GUEST room."
"I said GET OUT."
"Make me, make me get out." Jackie came over and pushed her. "Come on, let it out, cry, you know you want to, punch me, kick me, scream at me."
"No, you don't seem like the type."
"The type to do what."
"Tell on me."
"Now why would I do that?"
"Because that's exactly what I want you to do."
"I know it is, which is why I wouldn't do it, I'd blame another of my sibs, get them in trouble."
"You know what you are?"
"Yea, I'm a mind twister, and I like that, I'm also your worst nightmare, so just do as I say, and we can be practically best friends." Tassi turned and left, with that Dan Scott grin on her face. She loved playing people like that, it's always fun, until someone gets hurt, then its hilarious, like a mouse in a maze, trying to find the cheese, but he's trapped in a box, and she keeps shaking it.
The next morning Tassi flew out of bed early to mail her letter, saying she would be joining them at the Olympics. She was 18, and loving it, and official adult. The life, she could drive, move out, vote, join the army, whatever she wanted. For everyone else, it was Christmas morning. Emmie was psyched Santa came, Dezzy was psyched her punishment was up and she got a bunch of new clothes and CDs for her collection. Ricky got a new basketball and shoes to play, since his were all old and yuck. Everyone was spending time as a family, except Jackie and Tassi.
