The Jones Boys

Chapter 14 - Visits

I'm lying on my bed when I hear the scream from down the hall,  I am almost alarmed but I hear a load of laughter afterwards so I carry on throwing my netball into the air and catching it and again.  Until I hear: 'Aila, I'm gonna get you.'

My first reaction is "What the hell? That's kinda creepy.  And coming from Jack? What is going on?"  But then I remember that I used his toothbrush and he probably just did too.

I grin and hold the ball above my head, still lying comfortably on my back.  I would usually not want to get up and run from someone but today was the last day of school before the October half term so I'm pretty excited.

Jack runs into my room and I launch the netball towards the side of his head as a distraction and as he recovers and I get up and run out of my room. 

These chases happen way too regularly in this house, more often than an argument in the kids home.

I hear Jack sprint after me and as I pass the bathroom that most of us kids use, I see Jordan, Newt and Fin standing there, filming us.  Jordan and Fin have their toothbrushes in their mouths.

Laughing, I take off down the stairs, I know Jack is basically right behind me, he's on the school running team, both for long distance and short, but I am still just that tiny bit faster than him, plus I had a bit of a head start.  I run in, around and out of rooms, Jack still bundling behind me.

I run into the games room for the second time and straight in front of the TV and Sam and Joey both move their bodies so they can carry on playing whatever it is they are on the XBox. I laugh again and run around the sofa they are sitting on, Jack right behind me.  We come to a standstill, me infront of the TV, Jack blocking the door, Joey and Sam screaming at me to get out of the way.

I smirk, deciding how I'm going to get out of the room and break eye contact with Jack.  I jump over the sofa, pushing Joey and Sam apart as I do and push Jack out of the way.  I feel him grab onto my arm but, luckily, I'm wearing a long sleeved t-shirt so I can pull away without getting hurt.  I run back into the hall and see someone open the door but I keep running, shouting 'Hi!' over my shoulder. 

I run into the living room and then back into the hall but stop abruptly at what I see.  I fall to the floor as Jack collides with me but I look straight back up at the person who just came into the house, not home yet.

Jack senses the... not awkwardness, I wouldn't call it that at all, I don't know what it is. Excitement? Shock? I don't know, but anyway, he punches my arm and mutters something about not using his toothbrush again, which I would usually burst out laughing at but I'm too surprised to do anything but stand up and stare at the person who is standing next to Kate.

She breaks into a grin and I do too, rushing over and hugging Liza for the first time in at least a month.

'I love you so much.' I weep into her curley blonde hair.

'I love you so much too Aila.' She chuckles into my neck.

We stay hugging for a good 5 minutes before Liza pulls away and looks into my eyes, searching them. We're both still grinning and I hug Kate who is still standing next to us.

'Thank you.' I whisper into Kate's brown hair and I pull away and hold onto Liza's hand.

'Don't mention it, I was getting worried about you.' She laughs. 'Liza, don't let the boys be rude to you, I'm sure Aila will look after you but please help yourself to anything you want.' Kate smiles at us and groans as we hear Tom screeching upstairs.

I take some of Liza's bags and help her take it all up to my room.

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Once we've finished taking Liza's bags to my room I walk around the house, giving her a tour and introducing her to everyone. She meets Ben and Tom first, who are playing with cars in their room. Ben gets really excited and runs up to her and hugs my best friend. Tom is a lot more shy and just waves from his place on the ground.

Next we find Jack and Joseph in their room. They are both painting on an easel however Jack seems to be ranting about a girl.

'Who've you got a crush on?' I ask, walking in and looking at the easel. They are painting some kind of landscape.

'None of your business.' Jack says as he puts some blue paint on their soon-to-be-masterpiece.

'Oo, sorry.  Guys, this is Liza.' I say, turning around and presenting her.

They both stop what they are doing and look at her. Joseph wipes his hands on his trousers and holds one out for Liza to shake, saying hi. Jack copies his twin.

'Yeah, okay, I'll try to remember that you're Jack and you're Joseph,' She points at them as she says their names. 'But I can't promise anything.' We laugh and head out, knocking on Fin and Newt's door.

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¡Hola!

Thanks for reading this short chapter, I hope you enjoyed it

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Thank you once again
Mxxx