Angel Of Clinia

4. Moving Day

The day finally came. The dreaded moving day. Every cheesy story has one, and I guess my life does kind of sound like some story, just a very twisted one.

I'm practically drowned in moving boxes. I liked our house, but supposedly our new one is quite upgraded compared to it; since he's a CEO. Most people wonder, and I would too if I didn't know the answer, why would my family be moving with my adult brother? That's because there is family security, so that way Leo can't tell secrets, he's safe, we're safe, and he knows we are safe from any crazy citizen who may rebel against his rules and take it out on us.

We piled in the minivan, and it started up, and began lifting off the ground, and gliding through the sky. We have flying cars now, but I guess given the future, that isn't too surprising. I watched as we pulled away from our house, knowing I'd probably not see it again, until I visit Jenny. I'll probably have some unnecessary anger towards whoever moves in next, but besides that, I'll be glad just to pass by.

Leo, who was driving, kept tapping his hands on the steering wheel as he hummed a happy tune. My dad read the hologram newspaper, and my mom scrolled through holo-gram. A futuristic adaptation of something called Insta something or other. I don't get it.

I saw so many sky signs. 15 miles until exit. 40 mph. 10 miles until exit.

Nothing seemed real, and I know I've said it before but-
Wait. This is the perfect set up. The older brother of the girl who doesn't believe the government receives the job! That's it! "Wait!" I yell. My brother almost has a heart attack. "What?! What is it?!" He slams on the breaks. "They are going to catfish you," I say, my breathing getting heavy. "Think about it. The girl who knows is proven wrong because her brother has the opportunity to have a major job, and because you can't say anything, it'll seem to make me appear as a liar or just flat incorrect!" I say the whole sentence without breathing, and I pant afterward, because I almost died trying to get it all out.

While my family saw my point, there was nothing they could do. He had to take the job now. If only I would have realized it sooner.

Five hour car ride with the truth let out.

We pull up to a white house with a large fence and gate in front that protected a pond with a bridge leading to the front door. It had a natural balcony, meaning it was laying on an elevated mound of clean cut grass. It wasn't too much, and it wasn't low quality either.

That was, until we got inside. There was a giant marble staircase that made a subtle swoop around to the right, and there was a waterfall inside that sprayed into an indoor pool with controllable heat settings. Then there was a garden inside with a little fence and panels above to give it heat and there is a setting for it to automatically water the plants inside. The living room ceiling had clouds that cling to the top, and they had LED lights so you could change the color. They had surround sound that you could only see by a little white dot on the wall, that you press to turn on, and press to turn off.

That's all I could see from first entering, until I looked to my side and saw the wall with a golden bar that strung across every other. I was in shock. All of us had our mouths dropped open in awe. "This is magnificent," Leo starts, before he begins stuttering as he spins around the room. My parents are calm, and they start to walk around like it is an art museum. I'm left standing in place, until I finally decide to move. Everyone else explored the first floor, so I made my way upstairs. I felt the railing as I let my hand trail up while I was walking upstairs. I looked around for a possible room. I saw a room in the corner of the hallway, and opened up the door. It had a loft in the room that was just big enough for a bed. There was a closet inside that was a decent space. Considering how extravagant the downstairs was, I can't lie when I say I was sort of disappointed. I settled with it, without even looking at the other rooms. I took my suitcase and placed it under the loft to show that it has been claimed. Not that I think my adult family would actually want it anyway. I didn't hear the footsteps, so it startled me when Leo was suddenly behind me. "Nice room." He says. I leap back. "Oh, yeah it is." I say quietly. "Why don't we swim later and keep your mind off of things." He ruffles my hair. "Sure," I say, "but to be honest I would rather go to an abandoned factory." I joke. "Good luck finding one around here," he laughs.

It was true we probably wouldn't find one around here. It is the heart of Clinia, and the most city like place you can get. We have about the only house in the big part of the city, everything else are apartments. This place is the most populated, and almost always renovated to be the most technologically advanced. Sometimes they have major updates, but even those take like 10 seconds to do, and typically you don't even notice.

I sat on the floor of my room, and gave Jenny a call when Leo left. "Hello?" Jenny says. "Hey," I say in reply. "How's the house?" She asks with an anxious tone. "Certainly interesting, you'll have to come over some time. I'll send the house on RealEstater.com." I send it. "Wow! I really do have to come over sometime! Is that an indoor pool?" She asks. "Yep, and it has a temperature control." I tell her.

We talk for three hours, but eventually she has to go. I do too, because I have to check in with Leo so we can swim.

"Ready?" I ask him. "Almost, let me finish this paperwork." He looks over and smiles before he looks right back at the paper with a fallen expression.

I head back upstairs to change as a good time passer. "I-closet, give me Album Swimwear, and scroll thirteen to the right." The I-closet takes me to a red two piece that's attached by a sash over the right side. It is high waisted with a wide piece that goes straight across my chest, so not like a bikini. The sash only goes over one shoulder, so the other side doesn't have a strap. It whirs around and transfers digitally to this house, so I never have to bring my clothes anywhere. The suitcase I brought was filled with small items to put in my room. Once it appeared, I took it and changed with no hurry, since I'm assuming the paperwork will take a little bit.

I finish changing, and scroll on Holo-gram a bit, and decide to head downstairs. "Ready now?" I ask with my hands behind my back as I roll onto my tippy toes and drop back down; swaying forward and back.

"Yeah, sure. I can come back to this." He says, dropping his pen on the table. "Give me one minute to change."

He comes back in his swimsuit. "Cold or warm water?" I ask while at the control panel. "Warm, I don't feel like getting used to something presumably icy." He says, dipping his toe in the pool. I set it to warm, and wait for the progress bar to show that it is warmed up. "All good," I tell him, and cannonball into the pool. A dome reaches around to catch the splashed water and it stays so that we don't get it everywhere. "Huh, that's a good idea," he remarks before he too cannonballs into the pool, making giant waves that bounce me backwards. I got close to him and gave him a big splash in the face. "Ow," "That's what you get for almost throwing me out of the pool!" I laugh.

It wasn't often I got to hang out with Leo, so I was glad that if anything, the job brought us closer together.