Flying Too Close to the Sun

Lin

I was proud of my kid for helping out America. Lord knew the kid had been hard to love, but now that she wasn't with her mother she was almost a different person. Sofia/Maria had been toxic. America began to spend more and more time at our house. She was a frequent guest for dinner and Felix and Raina were starting to fall in love with her.

It was Friday night and America was staying the night. We'd ordered pizza for delivery and the girls were in high spirits. They'd decided to make a concoction of different sodas in the kitchen. They were currently mixing together Sprite and Mountain Dew.

"Mr. Miranda! Try it!" America said, holding out a cup for me. I eyed it suspiciously then took a sip.

"That's disgusting," I said, handing the cup back.

"Whaaat?" She protested.

"And call me Lin, please," I told her. "Don't make a mess."

The spent a while mixing together four or five different types of sodas. They started laughing and soda was being spurt out their mouths. I just rolled my eyes, and then the doorbell rang. I signed the credit card receipt and took the three boxes from the delivery boy. Soon, the seven of us were around the table eating.

"America, look!" Felix said, putting two pepperonis on his eyes. She laughed at him.

"Seb, don't play with your food," I gently chided him. He popped them in his mouth and grinned at me.

After dinner, the girls retreated to Cam's room. They blasted music and pigged out on more junk food. Around 8:30 when it was time for the twins to go to bed I had to remind them to keep it down. Pippa and I went to bed around 10:30 and they were still up giggling.

"They seem to have hit it off," Pippa commented as we both read in bed.

"Pretty ironic," I commented. "They finally decided to stop hating each other."

"I guess I have too," she said. America hadn't been our favorite child for a while, as she had caused both Cam and Molly problems. She was a new kid.

Around 1:00 I was awoken by loud giggling. It had been the second time already. I sighed and stepped out of bed and wandered down the hall. I needed my beauty sleep and I also didn't want them waking the twins. I knocked and heard shooshing from inside. I pushed the door open and both were hiding under their covers.

"Girls," I said. "You need to pipe it down. The twins are right next door."

"Sorry, Daddy," Cam said beneath her covers, and America giggled. She poked her head out from under the covers with a phone in her hand, and took a picture of me.

"Bed head!" she announced and I rolled my eyes.

"If you want pancakes tomorrow, I better not have to come in here again," I threatened and they immediately got really quiet. "Good night, girls."

I heard quiet giggling as I wandered back down the hall.

____

The girls didn't appear until after 11:00, not surprisingly. I made them both a cup of heavily sugared coffee and heated up some of the leftover pancakes. They began eating silently, groggily as they scrolled through their phones.

"Uggghh..." America commented, setting her phone face-down. "My mom has court on Tuesday."

I hadn't wanted to pry about her personal family business, but I was curious as to what Sofia/Maria was facing. She'd been arrested last week and was awaiting official charges.

"You don't have to go, do you?" I asked her as I unloaded the dishwasher.

"No," she said. "But I guess I'll know more about how long I'll be at the orphanage."