The Life Changing Vacation

~Chapter 70~

The next day

Kristina's POV
I went downstairs to eat breakfast around 11:30, and Joanna wasn't there.

"Where's Joanna?", I asked.

"We tricked her into meeting her sister today, and when she's back, we're gonna surprise her. It's her birthday", Alex told me.

"How old is she turning?", I asked.

"35", he answered as he gave us money.

"Here's some cash, feel free to buy something for Joanna", he said and packed out the shopping bag full of food.

"You've already went to the grocery store?", I asked.

"Well, duh.. we've done a lot of stuff while you slept so long", Dory said.

"That really didn't sound good", I said and giggled.

"Calm down, you perv", she said and blushed.

Alex drove us the the mall, and then Dory and I spread. We didn't want each other to know what we got for Joanna before she got the presents. For Joanna, I got a pocket knife and a pair of sunglasses. She will probably need a pocketknife since she's so violent. We used a long time looking for presents for Joanna. When we got home, we wrapped the gifts and then we helped Alex cooking the meal. While we sat the table, we could hear Joanna come home. We got stressed and ran to get the gifts.

"Oh my god", was the first thing Joanna said when she saw the table.

"Happy birthday, mom", Dory said and gave her the gift.

"Happy birthday", I said too. I wasn't comfortable enough to call her mom yet.

When Joanna opened the gift from Dory, I got embarrassed and wanted to bury myself. She a got a cup with candy, and on the cup it said "I love you, mom". It looked like Joanna was gonna cry.

And then she opened the gift from me.

"I'm embarrassed", I said when she saw the pocketknife and the sunglasses.

"Thank you so much to both of you! Why are you embarrassed, Kristina?", Joanna asked.

"Because it's a pocketknife and a pair of sunglasses", I said and giggled nervous.

"It's just a sign that you accept me for the monster I am", she said and giggled.

"You're not a monster though", I told her.

After we ate dinner, I ran to Alex' office to get pen and a peace of paper. I wrote a letter to Joanna, and gave it to her.

On the letter it said:

"Dear Joanna, happy birthday! I'm sorry for the awkward present, and I'm sorry but I don't think I'm gonna be able to call you mom yet.
The day you kidnapped us, was very hard for me.. I was broken after my parents died, and I suffered very much. But now, I feel like I've started to be attached to you both! I feel more safe here, and that was very hard in the beginning. It was hard to fall asleep without worrying if I would ever wake up or not. But now, I don't think that much about that. (Except when I know you're pissed haha.. then I'm terrified). But I want you to know that I like being here, and I would never want to leave you. My life has turned much more exciting. When I was in Norway, I suffered from social anxiety and depression. I didn't have that much friends, so I ended up sitting inside all day watching movies and tv shows. But suddenly, my life turned upside down and I lived with people I haven't met before. Cruel people. People that had killed my parents. But now, that doesn't matter. You're not my kidnappers anymore. This is my home!".

When Joanna read the letter, she shed a tear, and then she hugged me.

"I love you", she whispered into my ear.

"Guys, this is depressing.. come on, let's have a drink", Alex interrupted the moment.

"You remember what happened last time we drank", Joanna said.

But that didn't stop her.

"Let's have a drink", she said as she took a shot of champagne.