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“Cosmo, what are we going to do?”
“I… I don’t know darling”
“She’s only 16, she can’t do this”
“We have to talk to her about this”
“No. I promised I wouldn’t tell you. Please, just let her do it in her own time”
“It’ll be too late”
“This is happening regardless!”

“It all started in summer. We were all at the beach houses. A couple of guys from here came up to visit us. There was one in particular. Eloy Robbins. I thought he loved me Mum I really did. I gave him… my all”
“Your all?”
“Please don’t make me explain it. Anyway a few weeks later we got back to school and I was very sick. Sicker than I’d ever been. Teachers got wind that something was wrong with me and had me sent to the medical bay. As soon as they found out what was wrong, they kicked me out for breaking school policy”
“Amie, what did they find out?”
“I’m pregnant”
“You…”
“Please Mum, please don’t tell Dad. Please”

“Mum, can I talk to you please?”
“Sure honey, what’s on your mind?”
“It’s important…”
“Well do you want to wait for your father?”
”NO! Please, I need to talk to you”
“Well, you’d better take a seat”

Although Amie wouldn’t admit it, she loved being home with her little sisters. She loved seeing how much they’d grown. Come to think of it, Amie hadn’t been home since Suzie was a toddler, this was the first time she’d met the twins. Amie promised to come home every summer, but every summer came and went without even a phone call. It looked suspicious, she had to tell them all sooner or later.

“What the HELL is this?”
“Amie, watch your language?”
“No I will not! What the hell did you do to my room?!”
“Well you kept promising to come home, you never did and your sister needed her own room…”
“This is bullshit!”

Cosmo lost the plot hearing his eldest daughter use fowl language like that.

“I will NOT have language like that in this house young lady. Get out of my sight, we’ll deal with this in the morning!”

Cosmo and Julianna had no idea what they had let themselves in for. Just why did Amie get kicked out of school? What had she done that was so bad? At the end, they’d wish they’d never found out.

“Amie? What are you doing home?”

“Oh hi, nice to see you too”

“I mean it young lady!”

“Well, I sort of got kicked out of school”

“Kicked out?!”

“Well, sort of”

“I cannot comprehend how pissed off I am at you right now young lady”

Julianna didn’t mean to shout. She had never once shouted at any of her kids, but this was the final straw. Kicked out of school? Amie showed such love and compassion and couldn’t wait to go to a private school. What on earth would make Amie get kicked out of a place she apparently loved?

It’s okay, I can do this. Just knock on the door and say hello.

“No it’s cool guys, you don’t get up. I’ll answer the door”

“But why would you want to go there Amie?”
“Because daddy, all my friends are transferring. I would love to go, please”
“Well…”
“Please!”

Amie’s best friend Miranda was transferring to the School of Peace and Love in Bridgeport, a private school for children who are academically gifted. Julianna and Cosmo couldn’t deny that Amie was bright, but were they ready to let their daughter into the big wide world?

“Hello, can I speak to the head of the school please, I have an applicant”

Suzie was a fussy child. She didn’t like to be alone, and cried whenever Cosmo or Julianna left the room. Simple solution, crib in the bedrooom. Suzie never woke up once as long as everyone was around her.

Baby Suzie was just like her sister. Beautiful in every way, but a baby was yet to be born with Julianna’s mysterious eyes. “Just one more” thought Julianna. “Just one more, to see how things go”