Simply Pepe

CHAPTER ONE - AN UNEXPECTED SURPRISE

CHAPTER ONE – AN UNEXPECTED SURPRISE

Alexandra Murphy never expected to move. She lived in a small apartment with her parents, Joy and Milo Murphy, and her little, 10-year-old sister, Bridget. Her parents announced it to her on a pleasant, sunny Sunday afternoon.

"Well... we decided we should announce this to you early. We are going to be moving to Mesa, Arizona. I got a job as a journalist there, so we'll get more money." Alexandra's father announced, shifting nervously in his seat, hoping for a calm reaction.

"Yay! This is great! Are there going to be beaches?" asked Bridget, jumping up and down enthusiastically.

"It's extremely hot and dry there... and there are no beaches... But there are man-made lakes, right?"

"Yes, but not all of them are manmade. We will be living in a decently sized house, so not an apartment."

"Great! So, when are we leaving, Dad?" asked Bridget.

"We'll be leaving in a month. We might have to start packing up in a week, though."

xxx~TIME SKIP: ONE MONTH~xxx

Alexandra had finished packing early, and had been relieved that she had gotten a bedroom to herself. Bridget would always talk in her sleep, and Bridget also was extremely messy.

"Mom, I'm done packing! What should I do?" yelled Alexandra, flopping onto her bed.

"You can greet our new neighbors if you would like, Alex," her mother replied calmly, walking down the hallway and stopping in front of her door. "Also, Alex, please use an indoor voice."

"Okay, sorry. I'll go and greet the neighbors. Thanks!" Alexandra exclaimed, jumping up from her bed. She sprinted down the hallway, slipped on her converse quickly, and headed out the door.

It was extremely hot outside, and her weather app said it was about 112 degrees. The neighborhood all had houses that looked different; hers was a brick house painted sky-blue while the house across the street was the regular red brick, with a chimney on top.

Deciding that the house across the street seemed friendly enough, she headed down the road and knocked on the door.

"Anyone home?"

Suddenly, a green frog with the most beautiful eyes and caramel-brown hair arrived at the doorway. His eyes didn't have any color, but they were big black orbs with small, white shiny balls in the middle. His hair was swooped over to the side, well taken care of and rather shiny and even sparky. He probably had the best fashion and smelled of jasmine.

"Hello, there! Are you the new neighbor that arrived?" he asked cheerfully, moving aside to welcome her in.

"Oh, yeah, I am. What's your name?"

"My name is Pepe – my full name is Pepe Dank, though. How about you?"

"My name is Alexandra and my full name is Alexandra Murphy. Thanks for letting me in! It was rather hot out there."

"Oh, no problem, Alexandra! Here, if you want, you can sit on the recliner."

"Wow, thank you!"

"You're welcome, it was my pleasure. Where did you use to live?"

"Oh, I lived in North Carolina."

"I've heard that place is gorgeous. So, how are you liking this place?"

"It seems pretty nice but... it's REALLY hot."

Pepe chuckled, taking a sip of water from his icy glass, though he quickly stopped and set down his glass with a bang. "Oh, I'm sorry! Would you like anything to drink!"

"No, don't worry, it's fine. Uh... What drinks do you have?"

"Pepsi, lemonade, water, and root beer."

"I'll take root beer, please."

"Okay. I'll be right back."

Pepe left, walking down the hallway. Alexandra looked around her; there were paintings of what seemed to be a man with spiky, platinum blonde hair wearing a black shirt with flames; another painting featured a slightly elfish creature with a tall pointy hat, and the last painting showed a picture of what looked like Pepe's father, with a quote in italics saying, "Jet Fuel Can't Melt Steel Beams". Feeling slightly confused, she turned away from the painting and waited for Pepe to come back.

"Okay, I got your root beer. Is it fine that I put ice in it?"

"Yes, it's fine. Uh... Sorry if I'm being rude, but I love your hairstyle."

"Oh, thank you, Alexandra! You're absolutely gorgeous."

Alexandra blushed, using her black hair to cover her cheeks. "Thank you!"

"Would you like to stay for dinner tomorrow?" Pepe asked shyly, shuffling his green webbed feet as he asked.

"Of course! Here, I'll need to text my Mom first – okay, she said yes!"

"Great! You can come here tomorrow at 3:00 and leave at 7:00."

xxx~AUTHORS NOTE~xxx

AN: Thank you so much for reading, my little sack of steel beams! That's all I have to say for now... So... Uh... Yeah.