What are the chances? Incubus

Celeste: Family

It's the middle of winter, and Celeste, a single mom of 3 kids, Josephine, her oldest, Cordelia her youngest, and her son Michael, is sleeping after a long night of working at the casino.

"Mom! Mom, get up! We're going to be late for school!" Josephine calls out while jumping over Celeste on the bed.

"Nooo.. five more minutes Mom.. please?" Celeste rolls over, throwing her black, soft, furry fleece blanket over her head. Josephine giggles.

"Come on Mom! We gotta go! Michael and I are dressed and ready! you just gotta get up!" Josephine hopped off the bed, and towards the bedroom door. "Coffee is ready too! Get up!" Josephine is fourteen years old, about four-foot-six with a ballerina-type body. She has long strawberry-blonde hair and is the sweetest girl you'll ever meet.

"Josie!!!" Celeste calls out.

"What?" Josephine poked her head around the door frame.

"Have I ever told you how amazing you are?" Celeste sits up from her bed, her long brown hair all tangled and messy.

"Every day." She smiles. "MICHAEL!! MOM'S UP! GET YOUR SHOES ON!" Josie shouts down the hall.

"THEY ARE ON! YOU'RE NOT MY MOM!" Michael shouts back in his raspy voice, followed by a loud grunt. Celeste smiles tiredly and flops back down on the bed. She rolls to her left, where her littlest one, Cordelia, sleeps peacefully. Cordelia is four years old, with short blonde hair, and bright blue/green eyes. She looks like a porcelain doll or a little angel. even though when she's awake, she is a little destructive devil.

"Hey, baby." Celeste's gentle voice, whispers over little Cordelia. "We gotta get up and take your siblings to school." Celeste rubs Cordelia's back, giving her a gentle shake.

"No," Cordelia says sleepily. Celeste giggles while getting up out of the bed. She walks down the hall to Cordelia's room, to grab some clothes from her drawer.

"Mom." A raspy voice quietly emerges from behind her.

"Yes, son?" She continues to go through the clothes to find something warm to wear.

"Are we leaving yet?" Michael asks, leaning on the door frame, with his eyes only partly open. Michael is 11 years old, with short brown hair, and dark blue eyes. Standing at about four-foot-six inches tall, he's wearing his favorite black zip-up hoodie with his thumbs in the holes of the cuffs, a white tee shirt, with a small yellow stain on the collar, and a light brown stain near the bottom, with a pair of tattered jeans, and his black and white sneakers shoes. Celeste slowly turns around to look at Michael with a sarcastic expression on her face.

"Yes, I'm just getting your baby sister ready in warm clothes."

"Can I lay back down while you do that then?"

"No, it'll only take me about five minutes to get her ready," Celeste walks towards the doorway, to walk down the hall. "and that's not enough time for you to rest, and then hop back up to leave." She turns into her bedroom, giving Michael a big grin. Michael grunts loudly again. She gets Cordelia dressed in a dark blue and purple tie-dye pullover sweatshirt, and her fluffy brown winter boots, while Cordelia lays limp in the bed.

"Josie, wanna go start the car, while I get a cup of coffee?" Celeste calls out, but there is no response. "Josie?" she calls out again, walking out of her room, and into the hallway, where there is a little space between the bathroom, and the door leading downstairs, where she has a mini fridge and the coffee pot sitting. She pours herself a cup of coffee into her white travel mug.

"Josie went out to the van all ready to start it up I think," Michael grumbles while standing in his room doorway, playing on his phone.

"Well, let's not keep her waiting then. Let's go! We're running late!" Celeste Jokes to Michael. He drops his head back in annoyance and picks up his backpack from the floor. Celeste opens her arm out, to wrap around his shoulder. "Did you take your pill last night?" as she lightly sipped her hot coffee.

"Yeah," He replies, leaning away from her, looking up at her questionable face. "What? You don't believe me??" He pulls away aggressively. Celeste grips his shoulder lightly, preventing him from pulling too far.

"I didn't say that, I was just making sure you did." she pulls him in for a hug. He lightly hugs her back. "Can you hold this for a second, while I pick up your sister?" She hands her cup to him. He rolls his eyes while taking her cup reluctantly. Celeste picks up Cordelia, lays her on her shoulder, then takes her cup from Michael. "Let's go." She lets Michael walk in front of her out the door to the stairwell. It's seven-thirty in the morning and it's about a fifteen-minute trip to the kid's school. As Michael and Celeste come down the stairs, Celeste's brother, Gabriel, walks out of his room, across from the bottom of the staircase.

Gabe is twenty-seven years old, and about five-foot-eight inches tall. Only wearing a pair of light gray sweatpants, he chugs half a glass of water.

"You missed one!" Celeste calls out to Gabe.

"Missed one what?" he gasps, swallowing the water.

"The last standing hair on your chest." opening her index finger to point at him, with her cup in her hand. Gabe rolls his eyes, as he turns towards the double doors to the dining room, that connects to the kitchen.

"So did you! On your chin!" he shouts from around the corner. Celeste rolls her eyes while walking out the front door. She buckles Cordelia into her car seat, Then walks around her dark blue caravan, to get into the driver seat. She turns to Josie,

"Ready?"

Josie smiles. "Yup," she says buckling up. Celeste puts the van in reverse, and they drive away.