Little Weirdos

Chapter Six: Does It Almost Feel Like You've Been Here Before?

Benny's backpack had been removed of its school supplies and various things he'd just been holding in there, and packed with things he'd need. A brush, a toothbrush, a tube of toothpaste, overnight clothes, pajamas, and a really old T-shirt with a pair of basketball shorts. He was walking away from the street he lived, to the seven-house cul-de-sac on Conway Street. And he had the oddest feeling like he'd been here before.

The house in the middle was smaller than the others, but had a large field behind it. This was clearly Zoey's, and as she'd mentioned, it was previously a farmhouse.

The windows had blue trim, and the walls were white. The roof was wooden, dressed in a brick chimney. A second roof drooped from the second floor. The paint peeled from every crevice, but just barely. It couldn't have been older than forty years.

Benny walked up the stairs to the front porch, creaking under his feet. A single porch swing hung from the right, as he rung the doorbell. And, nearly immediately, Zoey opened the door.

"Benny!" She smiled. Her clothes were the same except for the color – everything she wore was now a pastel pink. "Come on in! Mason and Luke are already here."

"Thanks for inviting us." He stepped through as Zoey moved out of the way, doing a quick scan of the house.

It was actually a quaint little house, with three bedrooms—one for the children and two for the parents—with a spiral staircase going upstairs, a large kitchen, and a quaint fireplace sitting in the cozy living room. Truly, this seemed like the perfect place to live for someone like Zoey.

"Oh, what darling little children these are!" A voice called from the staircase, tiptoeing down gracefully. "You four seem like the perfect little buddies. Right out of a fairy tale."

Mason smiled, getting a small case of déjà vu. "Uh, thank you!"

The woman was Zoey's mother, who seemed to be wearing nearly the same color scheme as Zoey. Her slightly darker brown hair was long, and tied into a neat bun at the lower back. Her earrings were heavy and circular, but she acted like they were never there. Her heels clicked on the hardwood floor. "It's a pleasure to meet you three. And great to know that my darling Zoey has actually made friends."

Zoey huffed carefully, nearly feeling uncomfortable. With a shaky voice, she put a mask on. "Mommy, we're going upstairs."

"Well, let me know if you need anything, and please remember the rules." Zoey's mother directed the last statement to her.

"...Okay." Zoey swallowed, looking to the boys. "Come on."

Mason followed Zoey, then Benny, and then Luke. The spiral staircase was slightly hard to follow, and before disappearing upstairs, Luke looked back. Zoey's mother had clicked her heels all the way to the kitchen. Odd that she disappeared so quickly. But Luke shrugged it off, and followed the three upstairs.

They were met with three rooms, two to the left and one to the far right. Zoey pointed at the first on the left. "That's the bathroom." The second on the left. "That's Daddy's room. We don't go in there." And it only left Zoey's room to be on the far right, so Zoey stepped away from the last top stair and allowed the boys to follow behind her inside.

Zoey's room was painted pastel pink, the same as her dress, with white trim at the top and bottom. The curtains were pink, the bed was pink, the canopy above the bed was pink, the small box television was pink, the nightstand was white with a pink doily, the table was white with pink doilies, the rug was pink, the carpet was white, there's just so much pink and white stuff. A lot.