So, like Rafia always did, she exercised to burn away the anger pent up in her. She did some squat-thrusts, jumping jacks, and a few knee-bends as her parents slept in the other room… or so she thought that was where they went. Unfortunately she was wrong. She wasn’t all by herself.

Right outside of the door stood Maretta. She had been sitting outside on the porch for an hour and a half. First she had rooted through their own garbage can, looking for something to snack on as she enjoyed the nightime air. Kind of. Mostly she was just listening to her daughter get yelled at by her wife, Dorthy. “Ooooh! I’m Rafia and I’m not a stupid girl! I’m smaaaaart! My parents aren’t though! And I like to exercise,” she mimicked, thinking hatefully of her daughter. Now the common hostility she and her wife shared with Rafia had turned into an all out war. And this time Maretta wouldn’t let herself lose.

The next morning Rafia went out jogging around the waterfall next to their house when she spyed some of her favorite bell peppers. “Maybe I’ll go pick some,” she muttered as she jogged heartily. Finally she reached them, standing practically on the water’s edge. Her mother Maretta had found that she liked them and now she refused to go to the store and buy them anymore. “They are simply not good for you, Rafia. And you are already over-sized.” she had told her daughter simply. Rafia didn’t dare believe her mother. She was by no means ‘over-sized’, was she?

Suddenly she heard the beeping of the horn on the bright yellow bus, stationary in front of their stone mansion. She dropped two of the bell peppers into her bookbag and whipped off her jogging pants and jacket, hoping that she wouldn’t miss the bus again. There was no way she could run down to the valley today!  But much to her surprise she made it, the peppers still stolen away in her backpack.

 So, after talking with Donny some on his couch, they heard Carson squawling in the next room over. His sister, just a little older than him, Polly was standing over him and frowning. “What happened?” asked Rafia, the good-natured side of her coming out. “Well… he was just sitting there when all of a sudden he started crying! I didn’t do anything! I swear!” she said honestly. “He’s just tired, Polly sweetheart. Can I put him to bed?” So when Polly agreed, Rafia changed his diaper, fed him, and then laid him in his crib, smiling. Soon everyone but Donny was out like a light. “Well. Good-bye Donny! I hope I’ll see you soon!”

 So she crept out of the house… but as she left she saw headlights flashing and saw the red and blue lights of a police car as it headed up the driveway. “Ma’am. You are out after curfew and since you don’t appear to have any parents with you, you are going to have to come with us-” Rafia frowned at the police lady but nodded, “Rafia Hill. I live on 1123 Waterfall Way, if you please.” “Of course, sweetie. Let’s get you home.” and so they took off up the hill to her house in the hills.

 ”Oh I feel sick. What is she going to say to me?” wondered Rafia aloud. But soon enough she found out when heavy-set Dorthea tramped out of the brightly lit house. “Why every light in there must be on!” crowed Rafia, not realizing that Dorthea was so close that she could hear her breathing.

 ”What is wrong with you, Rafia? We give you plenty of freedom and you abuse it, you stupid, stupid girl!” Rafia wanted to cower under her mother’s angry words. “NO!” she shouted angrily, “I am not a stupid girl! I’m smarter than you and Maretta! That’s what I know! And for your information I was at a friend’s house taking care of their little brother and sister with them! So I was doing nothing wrong!”

But they carried on inside when Rafia ran up the steps and into the house, trying to get away from her mother. But, jiggling all the way, Dora ran up the stairs to catch her daughter, faster than any other obese woman of her kind. She then began a long lecture, it went on and on and suddenly, Rafia couldn’t  take it anymore. She could not put up with this! She had to do something, and she had to do it fast!

So after running a mile and a half on the tread, Rafia dropped her water bottle and picked up her cell phone. She looked at all her messages; all from Cera Corduroy. She smiled at her friend’s name popping up in bright, bolded pink letters. “Oh, that Cera,” she laughed. Instead of waking up her parents, though she decided she would call the cab. Of course she could attempt to drive her car,  but mostly that just got her in trouble with her mothers.

When she arrived Cera was laughing at Cora for doing something and Cora was staring menacingly back. “Hey, Cera! Cora! How’s your dad?” she asked, thumbing towards Mr. Corduroy. Daniel smiled at her kindly from behind his thick-lensed glasses. “Oops. Guess he can hear better than…” she didn’t finish her sentence. Cora and Cera didn’t feel comfortable with her parents, so they never went to the Hill house. They all looked around for a moment before Cera clapped her hands excitably, “Ooh! The Sopranos is on! Let’s watch!”

So while Cora refused her triplet’s offer, Rafia accepted. Since Dorthea was a couch-potato she rarely got any time in front of the tube at home. She liked coming over to Cera’s every Tuesday night and watching it, but tonight it was just a rerun and apparently not worthy of popcorn and soft drinks. “Ohmygod! What is Meadow doing?” squealed Cera, open-mouthed. “I don’t know about that girl sometimes!” Cera, still looking appalled nodded, “Agreed! Totally agreed. Look at her now!” and so the girls continued sitting on the corduroy’s old, comfy, worn-down couch.

So after while Cera and Cora waved at Rafia. “Sorry, but we have to go to our cousin’s birthday party!” Rafia nodded slowly, “I guess I’ll head on home then-” she started but then suddenly the only boy, besides little Carson, in her best friend’s family walked up, his brown hair as wavy as always and his eyes just as sparkly. Even something so shallow as his looks made Rafia shudder. “Hey, wait! Rafia? You can stay a little longer if you want! Sure, I have to take care of Carson and Polly but… maybe you could help? They really like you,” he said bashfully. “I would like that, Donny. I guess my moms wouldn’t mind…” she said grinning stupidly.

And, like Rafia had said, her parents really didn’t mind. They were inside, lounging about in their pajamas in the kitchen, microwaving some dinner in the oven. “Hey, Marette? Where do you think that little slacker of ours went off to, eh?” Maretta looked at Dorthea, bored. “Honey, right now I don’t know or care. She’ll turn up by morning. She has to! She has school and a curfew. The police will bring her home if no one else will.” finished Maretta, unthoughfully. “Whatever you say. I’m just hungry right now, Marr.” and so the two continued on, not even stopping to think of Rafia again.

Meet the Hills, the family of three women living on Waterfall Way in Sunset Valley. There’s Dorthea, the childish couch-potato and the head of the family, her wife Maretta, the hydrophobic loser and the parent to go to for punishment, and finally, our star, Rafia Hill. She’s into books and dares… shee’s brave, smart, and a generally good person. Although her parents are far from it…

Rafia was always the top of her class, the smart one of the family. But she always knew there was something different about her. When she was little and played house with her friends she never wanted to have a daddy. “We just need two mommies. That’s how my family is. And a nanny!” she would chide her friends who did not have two same-sex parents. Rafia never really understood that she was a special case. And her parents never explained it to her, either.

Unfortunately both of her parents were completely un-caring and oblivious to her. Being the good child she was she always tried to strike up conversation and be kind to her parents. But sometimes the yelling and the fighting got out of control. “Good morning Maretta, Dora,” she chirped early one morning, “I made breakfast,” she said, trying to be nice to Maretta who had just grounded her the previous night for leaving a book on the couch. Dorthy rolled her eyes and patted her hair down.= as she sauntered out of the room.

“Didn’t I ground you last night?” shouted Maretta at her daughter. “Yes… and why does it matter? I won’t be going to that dance now, I guess.” Rafia was trying not to be angry with her mother, but she knew Maretta had just done it so she couldn’t go out with any of her friends from school, not that she had many or anything like that, though. “Well, I also said that you can’t use the kitchen! No cooking!” Rafia was outraged, “Excuse me? How will I eat?” Maretta growled back, “I guess you’ll just have to figure that out!” And with that Rafia dashedf out of their yellow living room into her cool blue one.

“I don’t hate them. I don’t,” she tried to reassure herself meekly. Then she looked around her room. When she was littler Dorthea had hired a nanny for her and she had slept in her room, taking care of her all hours of the night. Her name had been Mc-something and she had had bright red hair and pale skin. She was young, but extremely pretty with her glassy eyes and friendly smile. But she had moved out when little Rafia had been 10 and Rafia had never seen her again.

So, angry enough to spit, Rafia decided to hop onto the treadmill, her long grayish braids flying against her back as she ran. Rafia loved to run on the treadmill and would often run for hours while her mothers completely ignored the fact that she was in her room for hours upon hours. The treadmill was something she had found while prowling through the attic one night, all wrapped up in a box. Looking at her chubby baby fat she had drug it out and assembled it in her room. Maretta had once come into her room and scolded her for taking it, but that was a long time ago and her stinging words had long ago lost their edge.

But on the other hand, Maretta and Dorthea had never actually considered themselves as bad parents… they always just thought that if they weren’t interested in their child, it wasn’t their fault… But was it true? Was it really Rafia’s fault that they didn’t pay attention to her enough, Maretta asked herself sometimes. Maybe they just should have left her with that Mc-something girl… After all… she really loved Rafia. “Come on Marette! Get excited! Rafia’s not listening so we can do whatever we like…” Maretta smiled, “Dora, lovely, you are far too much!”

 I really hope that everyone will be patient for a few days while I get my latest story up and running. I can only give you a few spoilers…

1. It’s about a girl with two hateful lesbian parents who don’t appreciate her.

2. She is looking for love in the Valley… and as we all know… sometimes it just doesn’t work out.

3. One of her mothers is cheating with someone we all know very well… but who? you ask. Well… I will give you a hint… SHE’S RICH!

4. This one will definately be shorter than Kaitlynn and Kiki.

So, please. Enjoy this next story and tell me if you like it or not. It’s all part of my Sunset Valley Series. So beware… I’ll be spying some more later!

GOODBYE AND I HOPE YOU LIKE THIS NEXT STORY!!!

So here is where the story ends… in the newly improved house of the Carmicheal/Morrison family. So here goes the roll call:

So first there were Cora and Lace, Luis and Kiki’s twin girls. Coraline, with the pale blonde hair, loved everything girly. She got her style from her Aunt Kaitlynn, not from her mother. She was super-Ambitious, always passing the kids in school to be the best, really neat, and just a tad bit neurotic. Or a lot… jsut depending when you were around her. Her sister on the other hand was quite different, Lacey was really athletic so she was always eating healthy and keeping fit and she loved the outdoors which made playing sports like soccer and softball all the more fun. But the only problem with poor Lacey was that she was a coward, especially when it came to taking chances on the field or the court…

Secondly there were Donnie and Kallie. Kallie was the older of the two and had finally gotten her mother’s pretty brown hair, but had inherited her father’s lack of style, sadly… But her personality was almost a mirror image of her mother’s. She loved singing and painting with a passion and was always called the creative Carmicheal by her friends, teachers, and other adults that knew the rest of her creativity-lacking family (minus Kaitlynn of course…) and just like her mother, her nose was always pressed into a good book. Donnie on the other hand was a bit different than his sister, althought totally compatible, unlike the other two sibling of the house. He was breath-takingly smart and handsome, not a nerd at all like his father or his mother, who had one time had been. But the best things about him were the facts that he was very friendly to everyone and he was always ready for a joke since he had such a great sense of humor.

And then there were the two most recent lovebirds. They were really turning out to be great parents, loving but somewhat strict. They were looking forward to the move to a new, bigger house in a different neighborhood, like everyone else but were a little afraid to leave their home of more than 10 years now. But with all the extra-curricular activities their children were into could they make time for themselves? Well… that answer is always yes… even if it grossed the girls out a bit…

And finally, to America’s sweethearts… Kaitlynn and Jed. Now happily married for around 14 years the two were still going strong. Although the family was getting a bit too big for their house… They too were simply wonderful parents. Jed had begun to become more of a family man than the smart, technical type and of course, Kaitlynn had become more motherly and a bit less… well, flirtacious. She gave up all her hopelessly romantic ways to become just another ordinary housewife, like she had always wanted to be… Just kidding! Some things will just never change.

So after a few years the whole family decided they were ready to settle down with children, so Jed and Kaitlynn got busy working on Kaitlynn’s newest wish. But little did they know… Kiki and Luis were busy as well… so one a few months later, after going to the doctor for their regular check-ups and such the two women were right on track. They even bough matching maternity clothes! And still a few months later… out popped four beautiful children…So the two women were rushed to the hospital for their last visit… and each came home with a set of beautiful, rambunctious twins. Kaitlynn and Jed had a boy and a girl while, much to Luis’ delight, Kiki brought home two little girls wrapped in pale pink blankets…

The oldest of Kaitlynn’s twins was named Kallie. She had her mother’s warm honey-colored eyes and her curls while she posessed Jed’s skintone and freckles. She was as cute as could be and took after her mother, loving music and the arts. She would often sit in her crib and sing to herself until she fell asleep on those long nights that her mother would stay up, feeding the brood.

And then there was Donnie, sweet sweet Donnie. With his father’s red, red hair and his mother’s skin and her brown eyes as well. Too bad he didn’t have his father’s taste in clothes, however. (sorry Jed fans!) He was the second-oldest out of all the cousins but probably the most mature. He didn’t like playing with toys, no, he just liked sitting on his mother or father’s lap and listening to the adult conversation, laughing, and getting played with….

The oldest of Kiki’s twins was Coraline, mostly called Cora. She had her mother’s light blonde hair and her smiling mouth. She was not a daddy’s girl at all and seemed to hate all the time she spent with him and Jed. She mostly clung to her aunt and her mother. She was a brave little thing, always rummaging through dark cabinets and getting stuck in her toybox whenever she played in it…

And lastly, there was Miss Lacey. She was definately the daddy’s girl. She cherished her father and hand his same, strong athletic build and smilng face. She was skinny but was already starting to show signs of bulky, muscular arms like her father. Lace had her mother’s eyes and her long, batting eyelashes but she really looked like her father more than anything. But unlike her sister and her cousin she had short boyish hair that her father worried about, always petting it softly and whispering, “Please, please grow. I want my baby to be pretty. Please, please grow?”

 So it had been around a year since Kaitlynn and Jed got married on that fateful day. Many days just as blissful as that one passed, many were not quite as blissful. Jed, Kaitlynn, and Luis had all turned into true adults now, no longer basking in the warm rays of their youth… but Kiki was just as young and fresh as a spring chick and she knew it. One day, though, she had an idea. “Luis, today is your lucky day,” she had teased during breakfast, (he had now moved in by now since paying for his house was getting so expensive…) “Because I am going to take you to my favorite spot on the whole island, of course!” she had cried. Now she was running towards the waterfall with Luis right behind her, “Where are we going Kee? Come on! I’m getting tired!” she just laughed.

 Suddenly when Kiki stopped on a little moss-covered island in the  middle of the lake Luis felt that this was it. This was the time and place to do it… he had to do it now! “Kiki? Hold on, for a second, okay? Wait just a minute-” Kiki butted in, “But this, Luis is the pla-” Finally Luis got the box from out of her jacket pocket. “Here! Here’s the ring… and… and there! Kiki,” he started, he cleared his throat a moment the restarted, “Kiki Morrison, will you do me the honor of marrying me?” Suddenly Kiki’s eyes welled up and she allowed him to slip the shining ring on her finger.

 She tried to say “yes” but the words just would not come out so instead she simply nodded, tears spilling down her pale cheeks, her hand pressed delicately into Luis’. Finally her voice came to her in a sudden burst of emotion,”YES! Luis, yes, oh yes! I was going to tell you! This is the spot… the spot I have always dreamed of being married in! Since I was young I envisioned being proposed and finally married here, right here. So…” Luis grinned at her, “So… why don’t we get married right now?”

And they did. So deep in the woods, past all the mountainous rocks and the splashing waterfall stood Kiki and Luis Carmicheal. Getting married on the island that Kiki had dreamed of her whole life, without a care in the world. And suddenly, to them, nothing seemed as bad as it had before….

So they kissed. The whole crowd cheered, even Fiona who was still a little sad, Kiki who was thinking about her new muse, Luis and Luis who was thinking about his new muse, Kiki. And so it was final… the couple was married. They could now do whatever they wanted! They could get a jump on that big family they wanted, or even move out of their old house to a Newly-Wed home on the beach… Kaitlynn, given the view from here, was beginning to like that idea…

So Kaitlynn lept into her new husband’s arms, “Oh! This is perfection Jed. Thank you so much!” Kaitlynn smiled up at him as the sun set across the water. IT was the most perfect and envious wedding she had ever been to… and it was her own!  So they stood like that for a few moments, listening to the seagulls fly majestically through the air and the waves lick the edges of the shore before deciding that it was time to leave the beach. So they waved good-bye to all of their friends who were still at the wedding party and hopped into Jed’s car since Kiki had already left with her and Kaitlynn’s car with Luis is tow.

 So after a few short hours being back home (they had agreed on having no honeymoon as long as Kiki would stay at her friend Celina Rodriguez’s house for the night…) they were both passed out under the covers in Kaitlynn’s bedroom. Since they had settled on staying in the house, at least for a few years, Jed and Kaitlynn had automatically gotten the double bed that Kaitlynn had always slept in. Kiki was still in her old room, and most of Jed’s unwanted junk that he had brought over to sort out was hiding discreetly in the attic for now…

 So every night Luis came over for dinner and stayed a little while, talking to his brother, sister-in-law, and the girl of his dreams… who was obviously Kiki. Although she was oblivious to the fact that he was in love with her she too liked him. So the guys would talk about sports and other stuff guys enjoyed while the girls would sit at the old dining table and read books on cooking, music, and whatever else they could get their hands on. No matter what they were doing they always found a way to have a great time…

“Come on baby! Let’s get hitched!” cried Kaitlynn laughing all her nervousness away. “We can’t have any real fun until we’re married, anyways, right?” She laughed teasingly, “Tonight…well… Tonight is totally going down in history,” she joked suggestively. Jed looked doubtful but laughed along with her as he tried to make himself a little more at home. But Luis’ mouth, on the other hand, was gaping. Whoa, he thought, Jed hasn’t even gotten laid yet? That’s a shame that she’ll be his first, he thought. She was probably so experienced… and he… well. He just wasn’t.

“I love you, Jedidiah Carmicheal, I have always loved you and now… I always will,” she whispered, making swooping hand gestures. “I love you, too Kaitlynn Morrison. I vow to be with you forever. Life or death. We’ll see it all, okay? Together; I promise.” The waves crashed in the background and spray flew up onto the rocks next to the shore. A bobber floated off into the distance, but no one in the audience was paying any attention to that; they were completely focused on the romantic couple getting married on the beach.

Luis smiled as his brother leaned into Kaitlynn. “My brother is all grown-up!” Although Luis was the younger of the two he often thought of his older brother as being younger than he was considering that he was much more experienced in the whole “ladies” category. He clasped his hands together and smiled. What a perfect, sunny day for a wedding, too, he thought grinning… Or maybe he was just too into the perfect Maid of Honor standing next to him to notice how rediculously mushy everything, including his thoughts, was getting…

But, there was one person who couldn’t keep her eyes on the couple… Fiona. She couldn’t even recall why she came to this wedding anyways. She had come in the first place to apologize, but she had never planned on staying for the whole thing, because now she knew just why she had hated Kaitlynn Morrison so much. She had been jealous of her. Her special best-friend bond with Jed when they were younger, and how he admired her and clearly was in love with her. Everyone but her could tell… even their parents. That was why she found that she could stand her after she started dating Luis. She hadn’t ever liked him. Clearly they were just dating for the popularity…

 And so that was the end of their perfect wedding. A few people clapped, cheered, threw rice, and cried as the t wo exchanged rings, and held hands for a few moments. Some, like Fiona, looked on jealously. All of them had always been a little bitter towards the beautfiul casanova, who had always seemed to get everything she wanted and now she was getting married to the man of her dreams, too? It seemed like a little too much for some to handle… but everyone there seemed to be genuinely happy that she was finally getting to marry her man… all of them had noticed the chemistry… why hadn’t she? But now there was no time for regrets… and in just a few short words the happy two were going to be man and wife…