Laurel Love was at a standstill in her life. It was like she was stuck doing things that didn't matter. Nothing had meaning in her life anymore. Laurel wanted her luck to change. What she didn't know was that something was going to change her life i...
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
The van is nearly packed with our bags and suitcases, and it looks like we're a traveling circus right now. Vera's toys that aren't in her purple bag are thrown everywhere in the trunk, Fiona just had to pack a thousand pairs of black shoes, and Molly packed all of the gifts she got Fiona for her birthday. I'll admit, I packed a lot, too, but at least they are all in three neat bags that fit easily in the trunk. Mom and Dad's matching suitcases were sitting beneath the chaos, looking relatively normal compared to the rest of our stuff. I guess that describes them in real life, too.
Placing my hands on my hips, I have the urge to take everything out and rearrange the bags and suitcases to make everything fit better. I'm not sure if Dad will be able to see through the rearview window based on the towering bags, but it doesn't seem like he cares. I can hear him yelling at my sisters, telling them to hurry up or we'll be late for our reservation. Glancing back toward the house, I notice that the front door is wide open, allowing his words to spill out into the front yard. Frowning, I tear myself away from the mess of the trunk and head up the driveway.
The warm morning sun shines down on me as I reach the front door, and I start to regret wearing a random pair of sweatpants and Henry's sweatshirt with nothing on it. It's getting warmer as the day goes on, which contradicts what the weather app told me last night. I grip the collar of my new sweatshirt (well, it's old since Henry owned it before me, but it's new to me) and drag it down a little, trying to stop the heat from traveling through the fuzz-lined clothes I'm wearing.
I stand in the doorway to my house and see utter mayhem everywhere. I'm not sure what happened while I was standing out in front of the car, but it looks like the end of the world right now. Dad is running back and forth from the kitchen to the living room, a worried look on his weathered face. He stops when he sees me standing there, giving me a weird look. "What are you doing, Laurel?" he asks, crossing his arms over his chest. He stares at me through his glasses, and I can tell where I get the angry looks from. "Why are you standing there when we have so much to do?"
"First of all, everything is packed in the car," I say, trying not to make my dad even angrier. He's a little on edge right now, and I'm afraid that he won't let me go on vacation if he hates me. Maybe that would be good, a small piece of my heart whispers. I ignore it. "Second of all, what happened in here? Did a tornado hit the house while I was outside?"
"That tornado happened to be your older and younger sisters. They were going at it for whatever reason, and Fiona decided to throw things at Molly." Dad sighs, running a hand through his salt-and-pepper hair. "Your mother eventually calmed them down, and now we're cleaning up so your boyfriend doesn't think we're slobs."
"He knows I'm not a slob, so that should count," I say, laughing slightly. Dad looks at me, and I see a hint of a smile on his face, which is a good sign. His shoulders are still tense, though, hunched up close to his neck. "Where was Vera during all of this?"
"In Molly's arms. She even helped Molly throw toys at Fiona."
