'TIT TIT! TIT TIT!' the alarm clock in the children's bedroom chimed. "Ugh..." Brystal woke up only for a moment to set off the alarm clock. She laid back in bed, and her eyes fluttered shut immediately. The four were much too sleepy and tired from their library trip last night that they couldn't wake up.
Their mom came in with two pots, and started banging them together. "Wake up, children!" she yelled. This was the children's daily routine if the alarm clock didn't wake them up. "AHHH! Okay, okay, mom! I'm up! Quit with the pots!" shouted Brooks, shocked from the sudden sound of pots crashing together. "Not this again!!" Joe covered his ears, trying to drown the noise away. "WAHHHH!" Emma cried, making the loud commotion sound even louder. "Okay...I'm up..." Brystal rubbed her eyes and stretched.
The kids brushed their teeth, showered, and quickly changed, sleeping whenever their eyes weren't needed. At breakfast, they half-slept and half-ate the eggs and bacon their mom had whipped up. "OWW!" Joe woke with a shock as he realized he had poked his tongue with his fork. After sipping on some milk, he closed his eyes and continued half-sleeping. "Why in the world are you all so tired?" their dad asked. "It's as if you stayed up for almost all night or the whole night!"
Scared that their dad would find out their secret, the four opened their eyes widely and ate with so much energy, it looked as if they had eaten a hundred energy bars.
Minutes after finished checking that they packed everything, they walked to the nearest train station (which was miles away), and boarded the train with their luggage. After settling on the back of the train, they sat down and found things to do.
The children's mom got busy knitting, and they're dad was reading the newspaper. Brooks and Joe played a board game, and Emma and Brystal chatted about the latest fashion. In the end, the children fell asleep, the board game on Brooks's and Joe's lap and Brystal and Emma leaning on each other.
A few hours later, the train stopped and the kids awoke slowly, then kept the board game. They left the train station and wondered out the city. Brystal, Joe and Emma looked around in amazement while their parents and Brooks acted like it was quite normal. "For a boring city, it looks pretty and nice," Emma said. "Yeah... everything's so tall and bright..." Brystal nodded her head. "And there are cars!" Joe pointed at flashy-looking cars.
"Trust me," Brooks interrupted their comments about the city. "It's as boring and drab as it looks. You're looking at the outside of the city. Try to look in the inside," he chuckled. Emma peeped into a candy store and doubted him. "No! Whatever you say is not true! Look at that candy store. It's pink with delicious-looking candies!"
"No! I don't mean the inside of stores and stuff! Look at the citizens and the road!" Brooks pointed. The three amazed children turned to the opposite of amazed when they saw the angry and busy the citizens were and the filled-with-rubbish-streets. "Oh...that's the city inside..." Brystal said gloomily.
The family walked quietly to their new house, and once they reached it, the children gasped in surprise, even Brooks! It was the loveliest and most amazing house they'd ever seen. It was a two leveled house, with a garden and windows with curtains. There were double doors and a balcony, not to mention a dog and a cat house! "Wait...a dog and cat house?" Joe asked.
Suddenly, a white and brown puppy and an orange kitty with stripes came running over to them. "OMG! A beagle puppy breed and a tabby kitty!" Brystal hugged them. The children exchanged hugs with their new pets and went inside after thanking their parents for the lovely surprise.
The inside was as beautiful as the outside, too. There were matching furnitures and a couple of pet supplies. They ate lunch, played outside, helped to plant plants in the garden, read books and ate dinner. After that, they warmed their toes by the chimney and went to bed, right after a bedtime story from mom.