You can Bet on Me

Part 4 ~ Surprise Visitor

Maddison
I've decided. I've decided that I'm going to blame this all on Addison and that it's all her fault. Why? Well simply because she absolutely had to use my car yesterday for who knows or cares what, and I had to take the stinking bus. Well, not actually the school bus because I didn't go. If it wasn't for Addison absolutely needing to use my car, I would not have had to take the bus, Michael wouldn't have offered to pick me up, I wouldn't have stupidly said yes, and I wouldn't have had to sit through an awkward ten-minute ride back home with my boyfriend-not-boyfriend.

Urgh. Life sucks. It really does.
I tightened my grip on the steering wheel as I sat in my car, Eleanor and Danielle sitting in the back together playing with two toy ponies I had given them to shut them both up once they started getting noisy at the red traffic light. As soon as the light turned green again, I stepped on the accelerator pedal and the car lurched forward, quickly falling into an easy, under-speed-limit pace of seventy kilometres per hour.
"And then Princess Rainbow Fairy flies up into the sky with a whoosh!" declared Eleanor noisily. "Using her magic powers, she lifts the bad guy into the air and bang! Explodes the bad guy into a million pieces!"
"Hey," I snapped. "No violence, remember? Where did you learn that kind of stuff anyways? You're only six."
"Six and a half," corrects Eleanor.
"Right, six and a half." I rolled my eyes though Eleanor couldn't see it. "Now answer my question. Where did you learn that kind of language?"
"It's called English, we speak it daily," she replied snottily.
"Eleanor!" I snapped.
"Fi-ine," she replied in two syllables. "A boy in my class said that a dragon picked up a person in its claws and squeezed them until they exploded into a million pieces."
"Well don't learn from him." I hesitated before asking, "what's his name?"
"Jaxon. He's the most popular boy in my class, no, in our grade. He's sooo cool." From the rear-view mirror I could see Eleanor's eyes become dreamy.
"Ooh, my lil' sis has got a crush," I teased.
"I do not," she insisted.
"Oh please, I can see a love-struck girl from a million miles away." I joked. "Anyhow, don't get any ideas. You're too young and innocent to want love."
"Really? Love seems amazing to me – the boy saves the girl and they kiss romantically on a cliffside in the sunset and live happily ever after," swooned Eleanor.
I snorted. "Yeah, that's totally what love is." I paused for a moment. "You're too young to think about your happily ever after. And don't you even think of kissing a boy anytime soon. No boyfriends until you're my age and understand love, or at least until high school."
"Aww... I wish I was in high school. Then I could be smart and get a boyfriend. And maybe even my first kiss," she grumbled.
"Trust me, you don't want a boyfriend." I told her as I remembered the terrible drama between me and Michael. "Maybe you could be an independent woman," I suggested.
"Indapendint? What does that mean?" she asked, google-eyed.
"Independent. It means not having to depend on anyone or anything else and working to support yourself." I explained. "It means not needing a man to take care of you. We're better than men."
"So much better," agreed Danielle.
Eleanor let out a pouty sigh and muttered, "I still wish that I was in high school."
I laughed and turned onto our street. Spotting our house, I pulled over and pressed the control to open our double car garage. Papa's old Jeep wasn't parked there – he was probably still at work like usual. As soon as the car stopped, Danielle and Eleanor practically jumped out of the car and into the house, their bags flung over their shoulders.
"Race you!" Danielle screamed as she dived through the door. I laughed to myself and stopped the car before getting out, slinging my bag over my shoulder, and going into the house. It was seemingly quiet as I shut the door behind me, both mum and papa being at work and Addison and Abagail doing whatever it is that they do all day. I went straight up the stairs to my bedroom where I flung my bag onto my bed and collapsed on the soft carpet that covered my floor. Sometimes, I felt that my carpet was comfier than my bed.
I rolled over onto my stomach and just laid there for a moment. Urgh, I have homework to do. Get yourself together, Maddison. I told myself sternly. As soon as I got up, I instantly wished I was still on the carpet. Cold air seemed to enjoy stealing my warm, comfy moments. I groaned as I unzipped my bag and dragged out my textbooks. Throwing them all forcefully onto my desk, I sat down and opened my English textbook.
"Mads!" yelled Danielle from downstairs.
"What?" I yelled back.
"Can I have a chocolate?" she asked loudly.
"Fine!" I called. "Just don't take the KitKats! You know that they're my favourite."
"Yeah, yeah." I just barely heard her say before the sound of crinkling chocolate packets began to sound even upstairs. Sighing, I grabbed my pen and began doing the English essay that would be due tomorrow. Life is pain and torture. I groaned.
"Hey! No fair! I want a chocolate!" I nearly lost my mind then and there when I heard Eleanor's loud yell. "Mads! I want a chocolate too!"
"Yeah, go ahead." I called back down. "But the KitKats are mine."
"KitKats don't even taste that good. I don't know why you're so obsessed with them. Even Jaxon doesn't like KitKats." Shouted Eleanor.
"Ellie, just don't for God's sake take the bloody KitKats. And I am not obsessed with them," I yelled back. Eleanor didn't say anything else and just when I thought I would finally get some form of peace and quiet, my phone buzzed with a message.
"Who the hell is texting me?" I fumed as I turned my phone on and went to WhatsApp. Mum was texting me.

Mum: Don't forget to pick up Sammy.