Chapter #6He's 16 by: PX114   As you pulled into the driveway, you couldn’t help but smile excitedly. It had been a while since you’d been home, and now you were finally going to be able to stay for a while. Studying abroad in Germany the last couple of years had been great, but you were happy to be back in the United States. Grabbing the last of your bags from the trunk, you thanked the friend who’d picked you up from the airport and waved as he drove off.
Gathering your bags, you headed up the steps towards your front door. You wondered how Adam was doing; you’d meant to talk to him more recently, but with finals and writing your last big paper for your major you just hadn’t had a lot of time to call home. He’d sounded a bit strange the last time you’d called too, you thought to yourself. Almost as if his voice was higher than normal.
Setting your bags down on the step, you tried the front door. To your surprise, it didn’t budge. Had your stepmother changed the locks? Heading around to the backdoor you checked it, only to find it unlocked, which was also strange. Your dad had always been strict about keeping the doors locked. Grabbing your bags, you headed inside.
Your house looked slightly….different than what you remembered. Your stepmother had hung up all sorts of different paintings and portraits on the walls, whose paint was now a lighter sky blue color. An unfamiliar looking trophy sat on a place of pride in the living room. Maybe Adam had won something? He’d been talking about going out for some of the sports teams at his school when you’d called a couple months ago.
You were rounding a corner about to head for the stairs when you nearly collided with someone coming the other way. You opened your mouth, about to apologize….and paused.
Something was wrong.
The girl standing in front of you was dressed in the blue and white cheerleading uniform of your local high school. Her blonde hair was carefully styled, and her blue eyes had gone wide in shock. She also looked awfully familiar……
“Adam?” You said in shock, your bag dropping from your hand to the floor with a thump.
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“Ah, I see you’ve met Anna.” Your stepmother said when you barged upstairs a few minutes later, a mortified looking Adam following along behind you. You’d questioned him long enough to learn that no, this hadn’t been his idea, but he’d been dressing up like this for months now. The trophy was apparently from a competition his school’s cheerleading team—and yes, “Anna” had made the team, a thought that still made your head spin—had won a few weeks ago.
Apparently your stepmother had arranged it so that all of Adam’s friends thought he was overseas doing the same sort of exchange program you had done, while “Anna” was his cousin who’d come to stay with her while he was gone.
The whole thing was crazy, but you had to admit you weren’t shocked that no one had figured out the truth. Just like you Adam had almost feminine features naturally, and both of you had always been good actors.
Your stepmother looked annoyingly calm when you’d confronted her, demanding an explanation. “Adam was getting into trouble at school and hanging out with the wrong crowd. Anna has been much better behaved and even learned she’s a great cheerleader!” She smirked as Adam flushed in embarrassment. You glared at her.
“Don’t you think this is going a little too far? The school year is just about over. Adam’s learned his lesson. Why don’t you let “Anna” retire?”
Your stepmother frowned for a moment, then grinned. You didn’t like the look in her eyes. A sinking feeling came over you as she began talking.
“I’m afraid I’ve grown used to having another girl around the house. It’s rather nice. But I’ll make you a deal. I’ll let “Anna” slowly fade away…..if her older sister Melissa comes to stay with us.”
It doesn’t take you long to catch on to what she means, and you hesitate. But if doing this means Adam can escape having to play the role of “Anna” all summer…..you can handle it. Besides, your dad should be back from his own business trips by then.
“Okay.” You say. “I’ll do it.”  indicates the next chapter needs to be written. |
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