Meet the Springstons

New Town, New Beginning

"Wow. I can't believe we're here." Kirstien Springston gasped at the new scenery.

"New town, new beginning. That's what I always say!" Jake Summers replied, jokingly.

"Do you?"

"Guess not..."

"Mommy, are we there yet?! Are we finally home?!" Kasey yelled, forcing the two adults to clasp their hands on their ears.

"Yes, sweetie. Just a few more mintutes, and we'll be home." Kirstien tried to reassure her impatient daughter.

Kirstien looked back out the window. It took the "family" almost 3 days to get to this point. Their last home in Sunset Valley was the last place she would ever see her late husband, Blake. After his untimely passing, due to a car crash, she decided it was time to have a fresh start. Sadly, she didn't have enough money to send his body to their new town's graveyard, so she had to leave her husband behind.
But today was a new day. They only had to drive a few more minutes to get to the local housing so they could buy a starter home.
Kirstien gasped, looking at the vast landscape of their new town. They had chosen to live in the old town of Twinbrook, but knowing how old the town really was, even the "rich-people" houses would be antique.

"We're here, Kirstien. Kasey, stay here with Connor. We'll only be a few minutes." Jake said, stepping out of the rusted, old sloppy jaloppy.

Kirstien sighed. She knew they could only settle for a small house with not enough space for all of them. She couldn't even waste any money on a U-Haul to bring anything. She even had to leave her pictures of Blake behind so she could have enough money for her family. Raising two children is hard enough without doing so in an unstable household.

Kirstien and Jake walked into the small building. The sign above the door said "Housing" and the mat on the bottom said "Welcome". The little bell that rang when she walked in made Kirstien gasp.

"Hello! I don't think I've seen you guys here before!" The nice old lady at the desk greeted.

"Yes. We haven't been here, before. Do you have any houses available for us to rent?" Jake asked, getting right to business.

The old lady turned around and shuffled through some papers. After searching for awhile, she placed 9 papers on the desk. "What's your price?" She asked them.

Kirstien and Jake looked at eachother.
"$20,000" Jake answered.
The old lady's smile disappeared. She removed 8 of the papers, leaving only one.

"Then we've only got one to spare. Is it for the two of you?" She asked, smiling once more.

"No. We've got my son and daughter. We're hoping for a three bedroom house." Kirstien told the lady.

"This is the only one we've got. It's got 2 bedrooms and one bathroom." The old lady replied. "But if you want, we could add another room. It'll only cost you $3,971. This house is $16,000. It'll leave you with $29."

"Why is it such a strange number?" Jake asked, narrowing his eyes.

"Contractor expenses." The old lady said, simply.

"I guess it's better than nothing." Kirstien mumbled. "We'll take it."

"Great! I need both adults to sign on the dotted line." The old lady brightened, pulling out a contract.

Kirstien and Jake both stepped up and each took a pen from the cup sitting on the desk. Each, in turn, signed their names on the dotted line.

The old woman smiled again for the millionth time. "Welcome to Twinbrook."