Period of Adjustment

Chapter 1 ~ 3 Years Later

"Piper!"

"Clementine!"

"Come on! We have to out of herein five minutes!" Shayla and I yelled simultaneously.

"Oh. Piper. There you are." she said as she came down the stairs.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah. Here I am. Have you seen Clementine?" I asked her as I searched random places in the kitchen and the living room.

"Upstairs with Connor, the same place she's been for the last hour."

"Thanks." I ran passed her up the stairs to my friend, Connor's 'man-cave'.

I've been living with my two best friends, Shayla and Connor, in North Carolina for the passed three years, and now the three of us share a house. White Victorian with two stories, a basement, and quite a few bedrooms. It has light brown and red hardwood floors in the living room and kitchen, the bedrooms and basement are carpeted, and there's tile in the bathroom. We have a pool out back, which is the best part. Especially with the little one in the house.

"Connor!" I yelled down the hall.

When I came to the door covered in caution tape, without thinking about it, I opened the door to reveal my blonde-haired, hazel eyed friend playing some video game with my red-haired, blue-eyed two-old-daughter. She looked too engulfed in the game to notice I was in the doorway. Connor just sat on his couch, staring at her, while she jumped and yelled because he was beating her.

"Clementine, have you been playing games with Uncle Connor the whole time Aunt Shayla and I have been getting ready?" I put my hands on my hips.

"Yes, Mommy." She pulled her blue cowgirl hat over her eyes.

Connor looked at her then at me then at her then repeated the process a couple more times. If Clementine had hazel eyes and her hair was three shades darker, she would look just like me. An exact copy of me. All she wore was converse and cowboy boots, jeans, T-shirts and flannels, and cowboy hats and baseball caps.

"She is so your daughter. She does the same thing with her hat that you do."

"She's two-years-old. You've known her since before she was born. You live with her, and you're just realizing this?"

"Maybe." He squinted his eyes. "Alright, Clementine. You have to go with your mother and Aunt Shayla now. Well play later, okay?"

"Okay, Uncle Connor."

"Alright. Go to your mother."

"Thanks for keeping her occupied for me."

"Sure thing. I love your little look alike."

"Well see you later." I shut the door. "To the car!"

She grinned at me, and took off down the hallway. Sometimes I look what she does, and I question my parenting skills. She's always been abnormally happy even as a baby. But then again, I love with the village fool, which is probably why she never cried."

"Come on, Aunt Shayla! Let's go play dress up!" Clementine was pulling Shayla towards the door when I finally got to the steps.

"Mine. It's less of a pain since we're being her along."

"Alright then." She pulled my keys off the hook.

"You're not driving my car." I called as she ran out into the garage.

"Damn it!"

"Aunt Shayla is weird." Clementine looked up at me.

"You have no idea." We walked out to the garage.