Hi guys! I'd just like to say sorry for the REALLY long wait! But here it is, the long awaited first chapter! I'd also like to say thank you to phatkid for the pretty banner of Noelle on the side(:
Enjoy!
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One - "Overdue"
Noelle
"Now, are you sure you're going to be alright, Noelle?' Mom asked for the hundredth time, literally. 'You're going to be all alone in this house, my baby!"
I rolled my eyes, tucking my soft, curly blonde hair behind my ears. "Mom, I'm only living down the street! I have a phone, and I know the neighbours! Seriously, you need to calm down!" I'm sure I saw tears glistening in her eyes. I sighed, mothers.
"I know, I know. You're twenty now, a big girl, you can handle living on your own... I just feel like I'm losing you! Your brothers have left! You've left! It's only a matter of time before Lydia leaves me, then all I have is the dog!" She sniffed dramatically and grabbed the box of tissues from the kitchen counter.
My brand-new, state-of-the-art, sleek and spotless kitchen counter!
Finally, my own place, my own belongings! I could decorate however I liked, invite round whoever I wanted... The possibilities were endless! I could have a spontaneous party, run round the house naked (not that I would! If it was a dare, though...), I could even throw a load of food at the walls, just because they're my walls!
"Mom, you've known for months I've been planning to move out! You've had plenty of time to prepare for this moment!" I exclaimed, losing my patience. Why were mother's so emotional, twenty-four-seven?
"Yes, yes, I know... You know, Noelle, I think we should sit down, have a nice cup of tea and discuss the financial side of things." Mom said seriously, nodding along to herself.
"What's the point? The place is decorated, all I need to do is pay the bills when they come - easy!" I pointed out, knowing Mom was trying to place doubts in my head. It wouldn’t work though.
All my friends had their own houses and apartments now, so I knew how things worked. It seemed pretty simple – bills come in, your money goes out! How hard could it honestly be? A few measly bills a month – no big deal!
"Tsk, tsk... Your problem, Noelle, is that you are young and naïve! You talk about paying bills so carelessly, when you don't even have a job yet!" My mother waved her fist angrily, as if to stress her point.
"Fine, we can discuss payment and whatever! Waste of time, though, if you ask me..." I replied to her, trailing off.
"Excellent!" She beamed at me, "I'll put the kettle on then, shall I?" Nodding, I went and sat down at the kitchen table, crossing my legs and waiting patiently. Mom tottered about the kitchen noisily, rooting through various cupboards to try and work out where things were kept. Why she didn't just ask me, I'll never know.
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Five Months Later
I looked at the letter in my hands with shock, surprise, anger and most of all, pure disbelief:
'Dear Ms. N. McQueen,
It has come to our attention that you have failed to pay your rent on time for two months now. We were sympathetic for the first two lack of payments, but now we are obliged to urge you into paying your owed rent within two weeks or your contract with us will be terminated.
Many thanks,
Mary and Gary Hill, Hill Estates.'
The letter from my landlords seemed to be saying that I had two weeks to pay up three months of owed rent! How on earth was I expected to do that?
Grow some money? Claim to be a psychic and scam innocent people?
I decided to do what most young adults end up doing in a crisis: call the parents. I grabbed the cordless phone from the side and punched my parents’ number angrily. I paced around the room while I waited for someone to pick up.
"Hello?" A sickly sweet, innocent voice piped up from the other end of the line - my younger sister, Lydia, who acted like she was sixteen-going-on-forty.
"Lydia, hey, it's Noelle," I replied, "I really need to speak with Mom or Dad." I silently sent a prayer, hoping that they were at home, as my cell had broken a few weeks ago and was currently getting repaired.
"Hmm," Lydia mused, "I think Dad might be up in his office, hang on a second..." I could faintly hear her calling our Dad, with a pause which I assumed (and hoped) my Dad was replying.
I heard heavy footsteps thudding down stairs faintly, along with some panting."Hello? Noelle, what is it?" Clearly out of breath, my Dad's worried voice boomed down the phone. I could picture him pacing, phone in hand, worry lines etched onto his aging face.
"Daddy... I... I need help! I got a letter saying I need to pay my rent - three months of rent! I can hardly manage one month on my lousy wages! Help me Daddy!" I cried into the phone, near hysterics.
"Noelle, shush. Calm down, everything will be okay! C'mon, your old Dad has an answer for everything, am I right?" He chuckled loudly down the phone line. "I think I know what you can do, honey."
"What is it? What can I do?" I asked, really desperate.
"I don't think you are going to like it, Noelle, but I think you need a roommate..."
YOU ARE READING
Sunny Side Up, Honey!
Humor"He glanced around the kitchen, scanning the state-of-the-art worktops, the assortments of cookbooks strewn everywhere and the various baking ingredients that were cluttering the shelves. 'So,' he asked, obviously impressed, 'you cook?' I nodded, a...
