I'm sorry it took me so long to update. I have a tad too many stories going on right now. Good news are several of my stories are getting close to their endings. And those six are prioritized right now so I can later update the stories left more. It is this story, and then five others that are listed below if anyone wonders.
-Unpretty hurts
-How far I'll go
-The one where rawr means I love you in dinosaur
-Dancing in the rain
-Stranger defended
So you can expect to see those stories updated. And hopefully you won't have to wait for months and months for updates. Neither for any other stories when I haven't got as many going on.
And then, more notes. The page where I put up edits for the characters and stuff, Polyvore has been taken down. Yes. It's the whole page and not only my account. Instead I have now put up an Instagram account for my fanfiction-related pictures. Such as pictures of cla's and outfits, updates about what chapters I'm working on and more. And if you're interested in following it then you can find it under the name of "Linneagbfanfiction"
Thanks to Tif S for reviewing.
Look guys! I made a cover picture. It's stuffed animals that look like Lady and the tramp and a bottle that looks like some kind of beer bottle- (It was actually "Påskmust" in it- a non-alcoholic soda we drink for Easter or Christmas, but if it's for Christmas it's called "Julmust")
Also, to have them all in one place. Here are all the celebrity look-alike's for this story
Annie Derek- Baby Kaely
Grace Derek- Naya Rivera
Anthony Derek- Adam Rodriguez
Douglas Anderson- Dolph Lundgren
Sarah Jensen- Jennifer Aniston
Casey McIntosh- Ben Hampton (The kid on Instagram, not the rugby player)
Sophie Rose and Adam are portrayed by the actors who portrayed them in the last few clips of the last episode of the O. C. Adam is one named Easton Gage. But who it was for Sophie Rose I cannot find anywhere on the Internet.
This chapter is told from Kirsten's pov.
December the 28th2013, The Gymnast
December the 28th neither I nor Sandy could fall back asleep after being woken up by Annie in the morning again and the way she shouted. So for two hours before Annie, Ryan or Sophie Rose got up we only sat by the kitchen table and stares tiredly down into each cup of coffee.
"I just wish there was something we could do." I mumbled to Sandy. "If she'd just let us. Either we could help us or we could get help from somebody else that knew how. Like a psychiatrist or something. What I know is that I can't stand being woken up this early every morning anymore."
"I have to agree."
After that none of us seemed to have the energy to say anything at all. In the corner of my eye I could see Sandy sat with his fingers wrapped in his greying, dark hair in a distressed move. If I didn't know better I would have thought it looked as if he was crying.
"I wonder if we're going to hear that song again today?" Sandy questioned after a while. "For sure, yesterday we heard it from early morning until late night. And I never knew a song I liked so much that was really a part of some wonderful memories and now the thought of it makes me cringe."
I didn't answer. Annie had told us yesterday pretty much that song or whoever had done the cover of it that she had played were nothing. But if it really was nothing then why would she play it over and over for a whole day like she had?
It really did feel as with Annie, new things turned up every day. New questions were asked and new details showed. Surely there was a way they, and the way Annie was in just herself would make sense. But I wasn't so sure I wanted to know how.
Thirty two minutes past seven I and Sandy could hear Annie getting out of bed. Her bedroom was close to the kitchen where we were and we could hear her walking around. I got up and poured my cup of tea, now cold into the sink.
"I'll talk to her."
"And say what?"
"I don't know. But I can't just sit and wait for something to change."
"I'll come."
I waited for a minute while Sandy poured his tea out in the sink and stretched. He looked as tired as ever when we moved towards the door of Annie's room and I knocked the door.
"Annie?" I shouted through the door when there wasn't an answer at first. "It's me and Sandy. Can we come in?"
"It's your house."
I carefully opened the door. Annie stood up when we came in and seemed to be in the position of being ready to defend herself if we tried to touch her.
"It is our house yes. But it's your room. And know that nobody's allowed to come in here unless you want them to." Annie nodded slightly, but didn't move an inch or answer verbally. I suppressed a sigh and glanced towards Sandy who signed at me to continue. "Hey. Listen Annie… It's okay. We're not going to give you a lecture or anything only because we're both here. We just need some privacy. And…. I, and Sandy of course… We just wanted to take a chance to say that… if you're having problems of any kind… Nightmares, if you don't feel well or in pain of course, boredom or anything at all. That simply isn't the way they should be- you can tell us about it."
By the way Annie looked at us I could already tell we hadn't anywhere near reached her. While she breathed in to start answering I knew we weren't exactly going to get the response we were aiming for.
"What are you talking about? Of course there is nothing. Why you I feel ill or in pain? I feel fine. If I'm bored I just find something to do and I haven't dreamed a nightmare for as long as I can remember. This is like the best place I have ever lived. I even have my own room and you told me that no one's allowed to come in here unless I give them permission first. What would you think should be a problem? Is there anything I did?"
"No, you did nothing wrong. We just wanted to make sure you knew."
"Well. I'm fine. So you didn't need to. And you don't need to worry about me."
It was obvious Annie didn't want to talk about this. It was also obvious it wasn't as simple as she would have wanted to make it seem. I sent Sandy a hopeless kind of look. He looked as loss in what to say or do as I felt. And seemed to be hoping as much for me to say something than what I did him.
"That's what we're here for." Sandy said at last. I could hear the suppressed sigh in his voice. "Worrying I mean. And no one's going to get mad or anything. But we would really like for you to trust us with… sharing whatever you'd like. Sometimes things feel better after talking about them."
"Well, I'm not like that. Now GO. This is my room and I don't want you here."
After what we'd just told Annie about this being her own room I and Sandy had no choice. Without another word we both stood up to leave. Annie stood turned against the chest of drawers she had put her clothes in and chose something to wear for that day. Didn't even look up at us, well. At least not until Sandy bent down to the floor.
"Maybe you'll don't want to have this shirt lying from the floor."
"NO." Annie shouted louder than ever. "It's my floor, it's my shirt. Don't touch it."
The expression when she quickly turned around told us everything. So did the way the shirt looked where it laid- there was absolutely something hidden under it. Then, right next to it stood the CD player she had used all day yesterday. These things would most definitely have something to do with each other.
"GO." Annie more or less pushed me and Sandy away from her and towards the door. "I SAID…" We stumbled backwards through the door. "LEAVE ME ALONE."
She then threw the door closed with a BANG.
"We aren't allowed to slam the doors like that." Sophie Rose stood right nearby in the doorway to the kitchen. "You should let her know that. If I had done it you would scold me and tell me I can't do that."
I was on my way to scold her now. But Soph was only six years old. It would be hard to understand why she and Annie were treated differently. Then of course she'd think it was unfair and there was no point with scolding her for it. She was only a child after all.
"It's not actually that simple Soph." Sandy said, I was grateful he came up with something to say and followed while he led our daughter towards the kitchen. "Now, what do you want for breakfast? Oatmeal if I know you right."
"With banana and cinnamon."
While Sandy and Sophie Rose started their breakfast it wasn't long before we heard Annie's door open and close. Then footsteps and Annie soon came into the kitchen and looked around for something to have for breakfast.
"There's oatmeal over there if you want." Sandy pointed to the stove. "Otherwise, help yourself. Anything bought is bought to get eaten. And if you eat something we needed for something we'll just buy new." Annie nodded and walked over to the fridge. Then got out the salmon we had used for our big Christmas breakfast.
"It's nice to know you won't be spending all day in your room today too Annie." Sophie Rose stated. "I hope you won't. We barely saw you at all yesterday. But do you know who you'll be meeting today? My best friend Casey have been away at his brother's for Christmas. He came home late last night. I know he would have liked to come over already then but that was too late. So he's coming over today. Soon. It feels like we haven't met for ages even though it's only been a week. But it's not that strange because I and Casey have met almost every day as long as I can remember. Do you have a friend like that? One that you met every day since you can remember?"
I was surprised when Annie looked up from the salmon sandwich she was making when Sophie Rose was just making an innocent question. It seemed Sophie Rose and Sandy were too and Ryan just came into the room before Annie answered.
"No."
"No?" Ryan questioned drowsily and rubbed his eyes. "No what?"
Annie turned back to the sandwich. But I had seen Sophie Rose slump slightly with a saddened look upon her face where she sat. In the stern sound of Annie's voice in that one, short word I felt myself doing the same.
"But you've had to have some friends. Someone you knew forever?" Annie shook her head without looking up this time. "Never?" Annie shook her head again. "Not anyone?" Another shake. "Well… Now you're here I can be your friend. I can't be your best friend since Casey's my best friend but… I can be your almost best friend."
"I SAID NO."
In those three, short, shouted words there was so much broken…
With fast moves Annie took the two sandwiches she had made and her glass of milk. Then hurried over the floor and into her room slamming the door after her. With a thick kind of silence following it.
"Doesn't she want any friends?" Sophie Rose questioned in confusion. "But everyone wants friends. Everyone needs friends. There's no way a person could get through a whole life all alone... is there?"
I patted Sophie Rose's back when I couldn't think of anything to say.
"I'm sure Annie isn't all alone Soph." Ryan said and sat down next to her. "She's got us. Now eat, focus on your breakfast. Oatmeal? Well, I suppose you'll need the energy when Casey comes here after lunch. With a slight grimace (Oatmeal was definitely not Ryan's favorite, like it was Sophie Rose's) Ryan turned to his coffee and let the words silent.
"Here." Sophie Rose smiled and giggled again. Took a spoonful of oatmeal and shoved it close to Ryan's face and mouth. "Eat it. It's good for you. Eat. Come on then, eat."
Ryan moved away grimacing and moaning. But I noticed the smile when he turned away from his as-good-as little sister. Sophie Rose kept on giggling but ate still and finished her breakfast.
I didn't know that, but from her room Annie could hear the giggling and our family being just that. A family. And hearing the giggling a few of the tears that kept burning behind her eyes came rolling down her cheeks.
It was just that- a family.
Annie only came out of her room later to put the glass she had used in the dishwasher. Then she disappeared again. But while the song she had played through the house again and again all day yesterday wasn't heard once.
"What are you doing?" I knocked on her door to tell her about lunch. Annie only laid on her back on her bed only staring into the ceiling. "Have you been lying like that all day? Isn't there anything that you like doing? I'm sure we could arrange something for you if you do? Do you like reading? Or soccer? Or drawing? Anything?"
"I don't really have any hobbies." Annie answered at last. "Except for eating then. Did that Charlie or whatever his name was arrive yet?"
"His name is Casey. And no, he'll come here once we've had lunch."
As on a given signal, in the same moment as Sophie Rose swallowed her last bite there was a ring on the door bell and she got up and ran to the door while shouting.
"THEY'RE HERE THEY'RE HERE. Oh…."
"Isn't it cool? Mum said on Christmas, now I'm almost seven years old I am big enough to walk over to your house myself without her or dad having to come with me every time. Cool huh? I had so many cool presents. Did you? Can I see what you got? And…"
Casey and Sophie Rose made their way through the hallway towards the kitchen. Then, once they came through the doorway Casey recognized myself, Sandy and Ryan and he froze as well as his etes set on Annie.
Sophie Rose noticed that too.
"Casey, this is Annie and she's living with us right now. And Annie. This is Casey and he's my best friend. He only lives right down the street so we're almost neighbours. We've been best friends since we were babies." Casey was still staring on Annie who helped herself to more of the food and then ate with the manners of a horse.- to put it nicely. "Now come on, tell me. What did you get for Christmas?"
"You will never guess. My brother have got a trampoline." Casey told excitedly. "In his garden. He let me jump on it as much as I wanted. And then he and mum and dad told me that after New Year's some time we can go and buy one for me. And have in our garden, best Christmas gift ever. And Riley knows all kinds of cool tricks on the trampoline. Front flips and back flips and turning cartwheels and everything. When he comes here in the summer I'm going to have practiced loads and I will know how to do them too. They are so cool."
"They can't be that cool." Annie suddenly interrupted and snorted. "They're not hard to do without a trampoline. So they have to be super-easy to do on one."
Casey searched for the right words to come back with. He looked like a part of him wanted to say that he could do it and it wasn't that hard (he couldn't). And another part was impressed with any person that could.
"Well I can't do it. And my parents can't, and Sophie Rose can't… There's no one to teach me since Riley, my brother lives so far away."
Annie shrugged and snorted slightly at him. Then kept on eating until her plate was all clean while Casey was still watching her.
"What?"
"Can you do it?"
"Well, what do you think? I call things I can't do easy. Yes."
Casey pouted slightly. He didn't like people using the tone as if he was stupid. Then he raised his back and glared back at her. Trying to seem more confident than what I knew he was.
"Show us then."
I had expected her to hesitate, getting nervous and maybe she didn't know how to do it at all. Just wanted to prove Casey wrong. But she didn't, in fact she got onto her feet right away and threw her hoodie off and on the chair.
"Annie please. Flipping and all of that, if you're going to do that. Go outside, where there's nothing you can knock over and break."
She rolled her eyes. But obeyed and Casey and Sophie Rose followed her out of the room and towards our front door.
"I kind of want to see this."
"Me too."
After Sophie Rose and Casey I and Sandy followed. Ryan too since he just came down the stairs and must have sensed something was up. Annie only stood on the porch for a few seconds to- I guess choose an alright spot for whatever she was planning. Then walked out to the middle of the grass matt by the kitchen window. And while the five of us watched from the porch and Seth and Summer came up the road Annie jumped and made a back flip. Barely had her feet touched the ground before she did it front and then turned a cartwheel.
I wasn't any kind of expert in gymnastics or any other kind of sports. But even I could see that it was quite well done. And when I looked down on my side I could see Casey and Sophie Rose's eyes had opened wide and their chins had dropped.
"Wow…" Casey beamed. "That was so awesome. Where did you learn how to do that?" Annie just shrugged.
"Nowhere."
"You've had to learn somewhere." Casey stated with a frown. "Who taught you?"
"Nobody. I taught myself."
If Casey's big eyes could have grown any bigger they probably would have. He really was surprised and impressed in every way possible- and we at last knew something about what Annie's hobby might be. And if Sophie Rose hadn't started talking to him right then he could probably have asked a billion questions to learn what Annie had just showed him as if it was as easy as taking a step.
"Come on now Casey. I want to show you what I got for presents too. Just look at this T-shirt. With Lady and the tramp. And you will never guess what Seth and Summer surprised all of us with. Guess what?"
Casey and Sophie Rose turned and walked back into the house. Ryan, Seth and Summer followed. But I froze for another few seconds as she turned a cartwheel again- on one hand this time. And then another few gymnastic moves I didn't know what they were called.
"You know…" Sandy started and I noticed he was right behind me still. "…When Doug brought her here he told me she's a runner. If she wanted to run away she's had plenty of chances the last few days. Yet she's still here. Do we dare leave her alone outside you think?"
I glanced at Annie who seemed to be trying making another backflip. Honestly she seemed quite concentrated and something told me Sandy's friend Douglas might or might not have been right.
"Annie. We are going back inside. But as long as you don't leave the yard you can stay out here as long as you want. And stay at this side so we can see you from the kitchen."
"Okay."
It still wasn't without nervousity that she might get lost all of a sudden I closed the door after all of us and then went into the kitchen and gazed through the window. Yep, Annie was still there practicing her moves.
She confused me that girl! As if she hadn't done that enough only with coming here at all.
I stayed in the kitchen, but whether it was because she knew I watched her or not Annie kept what she'd said and never once made any intention of meaning to leave the spot of grass she was on. Well that was until she came inside two hours or so and came straight up to me.
"Do you have a skipping rope?"
"Ehrm…" I wondered for a second and then shook my head. "I don't think so. No… Neither Seth nor Sophie Rose ever had any interest in one so I don't think so. Why? Do you want one?" Annie shrugged. "We can get one if you do." She turned and walked away without listening. When she was almost out the doorway to the hallway I heard her mumble.
"All those toys and no skipping rope. Damn it that kid is spoilt."
I raised an eyebrow, but decided not to give any comments before I kept on riffling in the menus from town's all restaurants to try and figure what to order for dinner.
"A skipping rope. Shouldn't be too expensive should it?" I asked myself when went to do some laundry in the laundry room in the cellar."
Well sometimes I missed having Rosa back in Orange County to help with these things. And food that weren't from restaurants. But when I laughed to myself throwing T-shirts into the laundry machine I caught myself… well, I wouldn't call it enjoying it. But something calming around doing something I had to do and knew exactly how.
"Whoa." I jumped when I turned and suddenly had Annie right there. She hadn't been behind me a minute ago. Now, took a pair of pants in the pile of clothes, turned them inside out and helped me. "Thank you. That's very kind of you."
"It's the same laundry machine that we had when I lived with my mum and dad. Dad used to buy all clothes and only bought all black clothes so we could wash everything at once… I did the laundry most of the time. I can help you with the laundry anytime."
I had to freeze for a second and go through what Annie had just said to me. Then felt myself questioning it at least ten times before Annie looked up at me in wondering why I had stopped all of a sudden.
"What?"
"Nothing." I started sorting out the reds from the dirty laundry again. "But you just doesn't exactly seem like the type of a kid that volunteers to help out with chores. But then of course… neither did Ryan when he came here."
The last thing I said more to myself than to Annie.
"I guess I haven't since… Well, since I… since my parents… my dad… since I haven't been living with my parents anymore I haven't really… I don't really know why. But… I don't know. I can help out if you want me to."
Throwing the last red shirt into the laundry machine Annie closed the lid and started pressing the right buttons. She even did it before I had the time to show her what was right. As if to really show me she could.
"Of course I want you to. I think it's great when the kids want to help out." I handed her a box of laundry detergent. "That's great."
I put my hands behind my back and watched Annie choose the right program, temperature and put the machine on. Then after she had and left the room I checked everything. I was always worried that it would be too warm so that I shrunk someone's favorite shirt or something. This seemed to be correct though and I was shaking my head in confusion when meeting Sandy right outside.
"Well…" I said on the way back to the kitchen. "I suppose I shouldn't complain. We got ourselves a helper doing the laundry. But…" I watched out the window outside which Annie now sat down on the garden, with her legs stretched in front of her, leaned over and touched her toes. "…It's got to mean something doesn't it. Everything… there has to be a reason why she's doing it… No nine year old helps out with laundry or any other chore without whining about it. Unless they're doing it for a reason. More reason than clothes are dirty and there's nothing else to wear. Doesn't it?"
"Hmm…" Sandy might or might not have heard what I said while he watched Annie change position without standing up. "Wow, the split. I think I'd break every bone in my body if I tried… Sorry, what did you say honey? A reason… well. I guess… But a lot of children like gymnastics don't they?"
Random fact
It's actually not very rare that characters I make up can do things I can't. Not like having superpowers or anything. But it's happened quite a few times that my characters are running down the stairs (I'd probably die falling if I tried) and like in this chapter (yes, I can do the laundry) gymnastics.