Vanilla ice

Chapter 25:

Sophia

After our long flight and drive back home, we arrived at Dad's house. It's mine now. And the boys. Our new life is about to start. As I unlocked the door I saw the house was completely spotless. A new clean start.

"Wow, did the cleaning fairy stop by?"

"Don't be stupid, Liam." Spencer says.

"Spencer, be nice to your brother. I guess they did, Liam! Let's go check out your bedroom!"

"Okay!"

"Hey, Soph?" Spencer is standing by the doorway shuffling his feet.

"Yeah?"

"Is this a good thing?"

"Definitely, killer."

Walking towards the kitchen I saw that she took out the trash, cleaned the counter tops, did the dishes, cleaned out the fridge and left a note for me. The living room is tidied up, the cushions are stain free and the floor is mopped and vacuumed.

"Sophia! Come on!" Liam yells from down the hallway.

"I'm coming, Squirt!"

After seeing the house spotless I'm excited to see what this could bring us. I don't have to worry about a down payment on a new house. I have enough money to pay off the little debt left on the house. The money I have saved in my accounts should be enough to do the necessary repairs on my car too.

"Spencer, I have some good news."

"What's up?"

"You get your own room, killer! You no longer have to worry about keeping Liam safe."

"Wait, really?"

"Yes."

"Tomorrow after school I'm going to take you to the store and we can get some stuff for your room."

"Wait, Sophia, do we have that kind of money right now?"

"Don't worry about that, Killer."

*****

Owen

My mom is planning on coming up for my hockey game next week. Her and Sophia are going to spend the day with the boys and then go to my game later on. Today I had a meeting with my coach. It's almost the end of the season and I haven't decided if I'm going to try to go pro or move home after school ends. If I move home I can help Mom and Izzy. If I try to go pro I might not make it, but  if I do, I can provide for my family. I haven't decided yet.

After Sophia won her competition we went to the hotel and had so much fun. Liam and Spencer had gone out of their way to tell Sophia that everything was safe and fun. I had shipped some flowers to Sophia but the boys wanted to get her some from them. I couldn't just tell them no and dash their hopes so I said yes and we brought her them. Her outfit was beautiful. It was a mesh lace with pastel blue and purple covering her arms, stomach, and back in thin swirls.

Her skates were white and elegant, her hair was put up in a slicked back bun with her front bangs curled and framing her face. The rest of her bun had some pieces of hair out that were also curled. Her brown hair and ivory skin meshed perfectly with the flow of her dress. She looked beautiful and at peace when she was on the ice.

When we got back to the first practice, our coach told me that fixing up Sophia's house was actually a really good team bonding experience and was proud of me for thinking of it. It was nice spending time with the team outside of a party. It was a really good practice with amazing energy for once. After practice, Sophia and I went back to her house to put on a movie for everyone. We ordered pizza and had a great time.

Of course Liam fell asleep not even thirty minutes after eating. Spencer had gone to his room halfway through the movie to play with his friends. Sophia was snoring when I carried Liam to his room. When I got back she was awake and cleaning up from dinner. When I arrived at the house for the first time I was in pain at what Sophia was living in.

The couch was a dark brown with black and darker brown stains covering it. The carpeted living room was a nasty green color and the door was white with gray marks all over it. The front porch was tiny with rotting wood making up its foundation. The outside was a gray and green mix and had built up crud all over it.

The kitchen tile had gunk all over it and there was rotten food on the counters and a sink full of dishes. There were beer bottles littering the table. The stairs had stuff stacked on top of them and were really dirty. After the boys fixed it up it looked like a whole different house. The outside was now a light yellow with white shutters and a front porch to match it. All the gutters were clean and white. The door was even white.

The inside matched with a light gray couch with no stains, a white table and chairs to match, the tiles were white and shining. The kitchen table was no longer littered with beer bottles and the sink was cleared. The pantry and fridge were emptied of all the expired food and cleaned and organized to make it easier to access. The carpet was torn up and had light gray laminate floors. The walls were white instead of shades of brown and all the old wood was replaced. The bedrooms were re-done to match the boys' personalities.

Sophia's room was the only one who didn't need anything done to it. Spencer and Liam used to share a room but now they have separate rooms. Spencer's room was a light blue color with a white book shelf and organizing rack for his hockey stuff. His bed was white and had built-in storage. Liam's room was a white room with a "cars'' theme. He had Lighting McQueen red bed sheets, a bunch of posters, and tons of drawing stuff that was put in bins to make more space.

I love that the boys and my girl are thriving. I'm a little worried about Spencer but Sophia told me that he was fine. I'm proud of Sophia. She is doing great.