After Inge and Oliver Freddy had left for university, Ranveig
turned to Robert to tell him it was time to head inside.. and that
she meant what she said when he should start to help out a little
more around the house.. She had told him so in a calm and friendly
manner, but he was still of the opinion that she was being
rude..
"Robert, please.. " Ranveig said while lifting her right
hand signalling for him to stop the nonsense "You're not just
a kid anymore.. you're old enough to help out!"
"..but
I don't know how to cook!" Robert said, scrambling to be
let off the hook..
"Then I'll show you.. but Robert, this isn't just about you cooking or doing chores..." Ranveig said, her voice becoming more gentle.
"What's it about then, mom?" Robert interrupted "Why
can't I stay out for as long as I want, and why do you ground me for
it? I just wanted to play some football!"
"Robert,
this is what I'm trying to teach you... you can't always do what you
want.."
"Why not?" Robert wanted to know.
"Well.. let's say I allowed you to stay up all night,
playing football at the park like you want....what do you think would
happen?" Ranveig asked.
"I dunno..I'd be really good at scoring goals..?" Robert said, looking at his mom with a slightly confused face.
"Yeah, with time.. but what else do you think would happen?" Ranveig asked, placing her hands on her hips "How would you feel the next day, when you had to wake up early for school?"
"Uhh... tired?" Robert said, still looking confused.. "Exactly, and then?" Ranveig followed up with.
"I dunno.. I'd want to sleep.." Robert said "..so I could just.. stay home and pretend I'm sick..?"
"No, Robert.. you can't do that...what do you think would happen to your grades then..?" Ranveig asked, starting to get a little weary from the conversation...
"Well, obviously they would get worse, probably..." Robert answered, before Ranveig couldn't take it anymore and went straight to the point. "Consequences, Robert! I'm trying to teach you consequences! That's why you can't do exactly what you want! That's why none of us can do exactly like we want!"
"Look, Robert! I don't want to deny you to hang out at the park, have fun or practice football! What I want you to understand is that.. that everything has it's time, and the middle of the night on a weekday is not the time to practice football.."
Ranveig had to struggle a bit to make him see the point she was
trying to make, but eventually he seemed to get it.. or at least
somehow he wasn't as cranky about it as he was just some minutes ago
and found himself able to make jokes about cutlery and decking the
table....
Teenagers, huh? :P Satisfied for now that he finally was "on her side" and agreed to go inside the house to watch tv, she decided to go practice at the chess table. Though she had stopped taking part in tournaments a long time ago, she still wanted to make sure she could beat almost anyone that wanted to challenge her to a match in that old board game..
At the same time police officer Amena Alnuman had just finished practicing the very same game over at the chess club after work, and now that the new house was finished all she had left to do before they could move in was to head over to the bank and the real estate agent to sign a few papers and transfer the money (and pay the property costs to cover taxes, insurance and registration fees of course) and the key would finally be hers..
She knew she would have to work hard to pay off the debt, but still thought it was worth it as it was a significant upgrade from her two previous homes in this town. It was even better and bigger than the apartment she had back in Almoravid..
It was already evening by the time they could finally move in,
after she had gone back to pick up George and hand the keys to the
old trailer back to their landlord.. Finally no more renting cheap
and decrepit housing... Finally they would get a brand new, modern
home with two floors, a bathroom, seperate laundry room, a spatious
kitchen, dining room and living room to call their own.
Once they have entered, George immediately wants to check out his brand new bedroom on the second floor.
He is pleased to see that this room, the entire house, everything, is much bigger than his previous little hideout, which wasn't much to speak of.. and this room is perfect, because he even has his own bookshelf and desk!
So he does what is only natural to him – sit down to immerse
himself in yet another book.. On the bed of course, because it's much
more comfortable than that office chair. Maybe with time Amena will
buy him a better chair, but for now this will have to
do...
Since they've been busy with the move, none of them have had the time to eat dinner yet, so the first thing Amena does is to make use of her brand new kitchen to make a meal for them. Their new home, of course, has all the essentials but is also a little minimalist in it's modern style with most things being in various shades of white or blue..
Amena chose this lot to build their house on, because it was the empty lot in town with the best view.. well, apart from the even more pricey lots by the old Landgraab estate, that is. She also made sure, to choose a house from the catalogue with plenty of large windows..
..and maybe after living there for a while, she might also invest in some window blinds or curtains, just because. :P
..but this isn't bad, and George is excited to have a new home. ;)
..a new home.. so this is where she was gonna end up.. Not as a painter or a sculptor like her parents.. but a police officer living with her nephew...dedicating her life to fighting criminals... in a strange town in a strange country, far away from home.. her old home... this.. this, she thought, was her home now.... her new home... now..
..and one of these days, she would become an international superspy... and one of these days she would get....
Justice.
..but until then, she knew she would have to work hard.. and do
her best to give George a good childhood, to teach him as much as she
could.. and then take him to the cinema tomorrow. ;)
After she had put away the leftovers, she thought that maybe she should buy some plants for the house or the garden. This house and this lot could benefit from some more decorations, for sure..
..but the most important things first! She had already made sure
that the house at least had a chess board.. to keep both her and her
nephews wits and logic as sharp as sharp can be..
Eventually, if she could find the time to for it, she would also
want to learn gardening, but for now, with all the things she wanted
to do.. she had to do.. it was mostly a decision she chose to sleep
on...
George had also retreated to his bedroom, but he couldn't go to sleep yet.. not without knowing how the book ended!
..but once he had done so, he too was out like a light on this first
night in their new home..
Good night. ;)
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