The law of time!

The Mad House

The next morning Amelia is rudely awoken by the alarm clock from her brother's room, BUZZ BUZZ BUZZ, bright glare from the sun shone straight through the bedroom window almost blinding her awake. 

BUZZ BUZZ BUZZ, Amelia getting very agitated looks at her clock on her beside table, “eight in the morning, what is his deal” before burying her head under her pillow and squeezing as tight around her ears as possible, but the buzzing did not stop. BUZZ BUZZ BUZZ she throws her pillow as hard as she can at the bedroom wall to the left of her bed before shouting at the top of her voice, tired and exhausted,  “OI WEASEL, TURN OFF THAT DAMN ALARM OR SO HELP ME GOD!!”.  You hear her brother reply with a defeated attitude “FINE FINE I’M UP” as Amelia's younger brother Toby rolls out of bed and walks past her bedroom door,  “I'm up now so you can stop being such a moo bag.” Her brother exclaimed as he strutted past her bedroom door still half asleep in his baggy zebra pyjamas and a bad case of bed hair.

After being woken up by her brother's alarm clock, Amelia eventually and reluctantly decides to get up as she is now wide awake, she gets herself ready and heads down stairs to the kitchen for some breakfast, where she sees her brother and father already sitting around the kitchen table eating a bowl of cereal. Toby is watching some kids cartoons while her dad has his face deep inside the morning newspaper. 

Amelia, still angry with her brother, pours a bowl of cereal whilst giving her brother the biggest death stare she could manage without actually physically hurting him.

Their dad noticing the tension between the two starts to chuckle to himself, amused with the sibling rivalry. 

“Why the hell do you have an alarm set for eight in the morning?” she questions her brother agitated and in need for answers. 

With his mouth still full of cereal he replies “because I want to be like dad and get up early, that's what a working man does' He replies with a smug demiana like he was proud to be a working man, still chewing with his mouth wide open. Amelia looks at him in disgust, revolted by the sight of her brother's cereal chomping and slodging around inside his mouth as a tiny bit of milk dribbled down his chin. “OH MY GOD, close your mouth you weasel” she throws a tea towel at his face for him to clean the milk dribbling down his chin,  “what do you mean a working man anyway? You’re ten years bloody old dribbling milk and watching the ninja turtles.”  This did not bother young Toby as he continues to sit at the table with a grin on his face tucking into his breakfast, knowing full well this is winding up his sister with maximum effect. “Dad, can you please tell this, WEASEL! To very kindly and politely GET LOST '' Dad now sensing things are starting to heat up a little bit too much and intervenes. “Alright guys that's enough now, Toby stop winding up your sister and Amelia stop reacting to your brother's silly antics, you know he only does it to get a reaction out of you, now just eat your breakfasts please we have a lot to do today. Amelia confused about the last bit of what her dad said glances at him with a baffled look on her face, Adamant she isn’t doing anything with her dad and brother.  “What do you mean, “we'' have a lot to do today, I’m going out with my friends so I'm already busy” she starts to show some of that teenage attitude towards her dad. “we promised that we would help your uncle start packing boxes, he is moving house next week and needs us, I was thinking on the way home we can go visit your mothers grave and freshen up the flowers'' Suddenly the room went silent, you could hear a pin drop it was that quiet. Toby stopped eating his cereal as he lifted his head from the bowl, his little face lit up with happiness but deep down you could tell he was still sad. Amelia, now standing, looked shocked and overcome with emotion, mouth slightly ajar, staring blankly at her father with a stunned look. “Like I said I'm busy” she walks off out of the room leaving the other two both disappointed she wasn't going to be there. All her dad wanted was to pay their respects together as a family. Toby looks up at his dad, not understanding his sister’s reaction and asks “why doesn't she ever come with us to see mum” dad looks down at Toby before looking up at the door. “I don't think she is ready to accept the truth” he paused in thought for a second “tidy your mess son and let's get a move on hey?, we don’t wanna keep your uncle waiting”.

About thirty minutes passed, Amelia now sat on her bedroom window ledge, watches as her father and brother head towards the car, wanting to go with them so badly but still unable to bring herself to see her mothers grave since the funeral cause that would make it real, dad hesitates to get into the car before looking up at Amelia’s window, they lock eyes for only a split second before she walks away onto her bed. You can see the disappointment on dad's face as he gets into the car and starts to drive off down the road.

As she sits on her unmade bed, her thoughts on whether or not she made the correct decision or not to go with them, she notices a small box of chocolates that Damian bought her a couple of days ago, sitting adjacent to all her makeup on top of her chest of drawers.

Needing a distraction and remembering last night she grabs the chocolates and makes her way down stairs, suddenly full of purpose and a spring in her step putting all that happened this morning with her family behind her and all the troubles with it, she heads for the door and towards Mr Roberts house. She stands at his front door pausing for a split second, lifts up her arms and knocks.