The car finally arrived at the bus stop and we thanked the chauffeur as soon as we got out of the car, "I was only doing my job no appreciations necessary." The man told us and got back into the car and drove off.
My mom sighed in relief as she look at me, "This money is going to sustain us big time Aki, It is five times my normal pay, We will be able to eat really good foods now." She said as she held the envelope tightly in her hands.
"Yes Mom, everything will be okay now." I told her as I hugged her again. The whole of Manhattan was lit up and there were people still going about, Some cafes were still opened so everywhere still felt safe unlike our place where it was dangerous as hell by this time.
We stood by for about ten minutes for the next upcoming bus and we quickly boarded it when it arrived, There were few people in the bus due to the late hour. Dad called mom to know where we were currently and my mom told him that it won't be long before we got to East Harlem.
The temperature was starting to get cold and my mom draped her jacket over me to prevent me from catching a cold. Both me and my brother are always quick to get the flu.
"Andrew would be awake by now." I told my mom as the bus sped up, "I don't think so, Your grandma won't let him be awake by this time." My mom countered.
"He can't sleep alone or without me." I tell her, "Well he will be with Grandma then since he can't sleep alone." She retorted and I nodded my head.
I wasn't able to force away my sleepiness any longer as I succumbed to it as the bus moved on.
It wasn't long after I started sleeping that I began to dream of those thieves I saw earlier, This time they were wearing a mask so I couldn't see their faces property.
They were escaping from the mansion and I found myself chasing after them. It was strange as I couldn't stop running until I caught up with them.
"Stop!" I screamed at them and strangely they did and even turned to face me, "What do you want?" They both questioned simultaneously, "Who are you guys, Why are you taking what doesn't belong to you?" I asked suddenly out of breath.
They didn't bother to answer any of my questions as they only began to remove their masks. my breathing became shorter as they were about to reveal their faces, They finally removed their masks and I was shocked when I saw only dark smoke looming on their faces, It was weird as they didn't look normal.
"You know who we are figure it out." They said before they vanished into the darkness which has already surrounded me and also suffocating me at the same time making me clutch my chest hard due to lack of air.
It felt real as I struggled to breath, I felt I like was being choked by the neck, I let out a scream as I couldn't take it anymore. unbeknownst to me i had scream in reality which made my mom panic when I did so.
I woke up as soon as I screamed with my mom straddling my face with her palms and people looking at me like I was crazy or something.
"What's wrong sweetheart?" My mom asked worriedly, "Nothing mom just a nightmare." I told her with a shaky voice as she drew me into a hug.
I felt relieved when she did so but my hands continued to shake, the weather was also a contribution to that.
We arrived at the east harlem bus station not long after, and everyone including us came down from the bus. We spotted dad at the waiting stand wearing his iconic coat and also holding one as well.
He waved at us as we approached him, He's wearing a big smile on his face which clearly says he missed us while we were away, Me especially.
"Why are you smiling so bright in the dark honey." My mom asked as they both hugged each other. "I am happy because my darling are back." He said as he kissed my forehead and lifted me up at the same time.
"Put me down dad I am not Andrew." I protested when he carried me like a ten year old. "Well that doesn't mean I can't carry you." He said and shrugged.
"Okay she's a big girl now." He said to my mom as he put me down when he saw my indifference. "Am so sorry we were late honey." My mom told my dad, "You were caught up with work honey no need to apologize for that, Now let's head home now it's really late." My dad said as he held my hands.
Lucky for us no hooligan came in our way but we were still cautious as we walked home, My mom told Dad about her pay and he was extremely happy for her, He was kinda disappointed in himself because he wasn't earning that much to support but my mom wasn't going to allow him demean himself.
"How was work today dad?" I asked him, "Oh my darling work went well thank God." He replied smiling.
We finally got home and I couldn't wait to go to bed as I was extremely tired and sleepy, My mom had started to yawn too and I bet both of us are going to sleep-in the whole day. My dad made fun of us as we both yawned continuously.
We turned on the lights of the living room when we came inside and found grandma asleep on the couch clutching her Bible to her chest. Andrew must be sleeping in the bedroom and I knew grandma must have put in great effort to ensure that.
"She fell asleep while reading the Bible." My dad whispered careful not to wake her up. "She can't sleep like this, It's bad for her back, I will wake her up." My mom said but my dad told her not to worry that he was going to do that.
He said we should go to bed already to that we've had a long day already. "Okay." My mom said nodding as she went with me to our bedroom to check on drew.
I couldn't help but let out a laugh as I saw the Drew's sleeping position. He was cuddled up in his blanket like a ten year old boy afraid of ghosts. It was unlike him as he always slept like a carefree twelve years old he was.
My mom scolded me for making fun of him but I just had to laugh with the few energy left in me, "He's a scaredy cat." I said as I sat on my bed yawning.
"Says the person who gets easily terrified of insects." Mom said as she adjusted Drew's position well and draped the blanket over him carefully. "Pfft." I said making a face as I laid down on my bed.
She came up to me to adjust my blanket too and gave me a kiss on the forehead, I smiled as she did so and closed my eyes to sleep.
Morning...
I wasn't planning to wake up early but drew won't stop pestering me to so I had no choice but to wake up even though I had it in my that I was going to sleep back, I have got the whole day.
Andy kept on asking about the place we went to yesterday, "How was the place Kira?, Was it big?, Was it fun?, Was it beautiful?" Drew blasted me with questions as soon as I opened my eyes.
"Yes, yes Andy, It was big, it was beautiful, And I also had fun." I said with a drawl and one eye opened. "Really!" He exclaimed. "Oh yes Andy now please let me sleep." I told him.
"Time for breakfast, C'mon Kira you have to eat something!" My dad called from the entrance of our bedroom as I was about to go back to my sleep.
I groan annoyingly kicking my legs against the bed as my dad came to pull me up. "I'll eat later, I want to sleep dad." I protested but he didn't listen instead he chuckled and told me how lazy I was.
I finally agreed and got up to brush my teeth, I went to the living room afterwards. It was grandma with dad's help that prepared breakfast for the whole family. Mom came out of the room, her eyes are still not fully awake, It was dad that went to wake her up.
We all settled down for breakfast and said our prayers. But we heard a knock from the door as we were about to start eating, "Who could that be?" My grandma asked in wonder because we rarely got any visits to our home, Except for maybe few of Dad's friends that only comes once in a while.
"I don't know." My dad said as he looks confused, "Might be a person from work?" My mom suggested as we kept on looking and wondering who it was.
We were hesitant to go open the door due to the increasing rate of break-in in the houses of this area so we were guarded.
But when the person outside knocked again my dad was forced to go check who the heck it was, My mom followed too.
"Who is it??" Dad questioned as he held the door knob, "The NYPD!" Said the person on the other side of the door.
My dad and mom both looked at each other in confusion Wondering why the NYPD officers would come to our home. Dad opened the door and it was them truly, They were about four to five as they all wore the uniform and we're also armed.
"How may we help you?" My mom asked calmly, "Are you Mrs Houston?" The leader asked and my mom nodded nervously.
"I am." She said, her voice shaky. "Ma'am you are under arrest for stealing a jewelry worth a million dollars at the Jones mansion yesterday night during the auction."
"What!!" Both mom and dad both said simultaneously with shock written on their faces.