Arrived (Book One)

"Honey," Mom called downstairs. "It's time for school!" I moaned as I curled onto the mattress. "Five more minutes," I called back. "Time doesn't stop itself," Mom groaned. Sighing, I got out of bed then stormed into the bathroom. As I looked into the mirror, I groaned. My dark brown hair was knotted, my tired hazel eyes winked back at me, and my olive brown skin was even paler than usual. I wore a red t-shirt and short pants. I brushed my teeth, washed my face, and dressed myself in a blue plaid t-shirt, jeans, and sneakers. As I came downstairs, Mom set the plate full of food on the table then kissed my cheek. "How was your sleep?" she asked. "Pretty good," I answered. "How are you, Mom?" She suppressed her annoying look then said okay. For some weird reason, Mom hated being called 'Mom'. She prefers me calling her Cole. She wore a slender work dress and matching shoes. Her ombre hair was curled into perfection, her eyes shone brown, and has plump lips. To me and Dad, Cole was like a supermodel, even though she denies it. I had Mom's slender curves, cocoa colored skin, and her tomboyish beauty. While I had Dad's hazel eyes, dark brown hair, and freckles. Surprisingly, I both inherited their intelligence, especially my Dad's. Mom thinks that I am becoming like Dad clone while Dad thinks I look a lot like Mom. Dad came downstairs, wearing a grey suit and tie. He kissed my mother's cheek and rustled my hair. "Hey Cleo," Dad chuckled. "You get a nice sleep?" I nodded. "Here's your breakfast, Ben." Mom smiled, handing a plate of breakfast for him. Dad took it and brushed his lips against hers. "Gross!" I cried. "I think I just puked in my orange juice." Laughing, Dad pinched my cheek then bit into his eggs. "So Dad," I began. "I have read some of your cases when you and Mom were seventeen, and I wanted to ask you something....about Ms. Caroline." Mom flashed Dad a worried look, but he brushed it off. "Go ahead Cleo," Dad shrugged. It was my nickname for when I was just a baby. "Why does Ms. Caroline hate you so much?" I blurted. "Cleo," Mom began. "Personally," he began. "I thought it was because she hates children, but mostly she doesn't know how lucky I am to solve cases with your wonderful mother." Mom blushed as she poured Dad's coffee. What I wanted to be more than anything in the world was become detectives like my parents, but now that Dad became a FBI agent and Mom working as an accountant, things were slowly getting boring. "Are you ready for school?" Dad asked. I nodded very eagerly as I swallowed my breakfast. I grabbed my backpack then kissed my Mom on the cheek. "Love you," I said. "Love you too." Mom said back. She handed me my lunchbag then kissed my Dad on the lips. "Have fun at your job," Mom beamed, handing Dad a bag of lunch. "Goodbye," he murmured as he walked out of the house. I gave Mom a warm hug then scampered after my dad. As Dad backed out of the driveway, he drove straight down the road until he stopped at a stoplight. "How are things at school?" Dad asked suddenly. "Good," I answered. He smiled, but he didn't look at my eyes. He knew I was lying. "Your guidance counselor called me and said that you are isolated," Dad continued. "She says that you are doing well at school and respected your teachers, but not making friends." "Can you tell the counselor to open her eyes?" I snapped. "I am trying to make friends, it's just high school is total pain in the butt." Dad raised his eyebrow. "I used to think the same thing when I was your age," Dad chuckled. "Have you even played nice with the children?" "Just last week, I broke a guy's arm-" I began. Dad looked at me sternly. "Why?" he interrupted. "You know violence isn't the answer, Cleo." "He was disrespecting Mom, calling her a Granny Smith With a Lame Job." I explained. "When you are in my shoes, do you just walk away when someone talks badly about you?" "Yes," Dad answered. "But not with violence. I understand you put your senior black belt training into some use, but hurting people, especially retarded moron, can reflect badly on you." Dad looked at me then touched my cheek. "I love you and your mother at the same time," he began. "Just promise me that you wouldn't do that stunt again." I nodded very slowly then buried my face on his shoulder. "I'm sorry," I said. "I won't do it ever again." "To be honest," he said. "I am actually proud of you for doing that. I know this is very unfatherly of me, but good job, breaking his arm." I beamed at my father then kissed his cheek. "But seriously," Dad warned. "Don't do it again. Did the teacher give you detention or anything I should know about?" "The teachers and the principal didn't know about the incident. I think the guy kept his mouth shut," I explained with a shrug. "And since he was a jock, he lied and said that he broke his arm during football practice." "Good," he smirked. When the red light turned green, Dad accelerated forward. The trip to school got quiet for a while. Biting my lip, I looked at Dad's face. His hair was combed with gel, his eyes were even greener than mine, and his beard trimmed down to his jawline. He looked very handsome. "Do you miss it?" I asked. "Being a member of The Expedition?" "Every day," he admitted. "But why would you become an FBI agent instead of a forensic expert?" I asked. "Your mother and I wanted to continue the adventure," Dad reasoned. "But your mother had you, lying in your crib, being adorable. So we retired as Private Investigators and became parents." "But why does Mom want to be an accountant when she could be, Catwoman?" I asked. "Ask your mother," he laughed. As Dad parked the car between the two twin vehicles, he kissed my forehead then waved goodbye. "I love you," I replied, gathering my lunchbag and backpack. He nodded as he watched me dashed out of the car and hurried to school.