The dishes took 10 minutes to do.

         I promised David 3 things: Do the dishes, don't wreak the house, and behave. I walked around the house, wondering what I could do. I went back to my room, and watched the waves from my window. Then I had the idea to go to the beach.

     I knew I had packed a swimsuit -for reasons I do even know- and so I looked in my suitcase and there it was. It wasn't anything much, just a yellow, red, and orange swimsuit, but it fit, and it was appropriate.

     As I walked down to the beach, I tried to remember the last time I'd even gone to a beach. Living in Orlando for most of my life, you would've thought I've been to the beach at least once. But I don't think that has ever been the case. I do know that I learned to swim in a creek that Mom, Dad, David and I had visited when I was around the age of 3.

     When I got to the beach, it was pretty crowded. It was a nice day out, so I guess I shouldn't be surprised. I spotted a family of three sitting on the beach. There was a girl around my age, and the parents were chatting happly, like they were the happiest couple ever.

     In my mind, I was trying to out my parent's faces on the couple's body's, trying to imagine my family being that perfect. I set up my chair and towel right in front of the waves, so I could feel the waves on my feet.

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     I must've dozed off because when I woke up, the sun was setting. I checked my watch and the time read 5:44. I looked around and saw that the picture-perfect family I admired so much was gone.

     I made the 5-minuet trek back to David's house. I hope he wasn't mad at me. I walked in through the front door which was unlocked. I went into the house, my feet soaking wet, with sand in between my toes.

     I walked into the dining room, where David and Kindred were talking to a police officer. 'Great' I thought. 'I made them worried about me.' I never wanted to be a burden on them. My job was only to live here and help out around the household. Not to make them worried about me. I sighed.

     "Oh, Nancy! Are you ok? Are you safe?" David said when she saw me. "When I got home, you weren't there, so I assumed the worse and called the police." I looked down, my cheeks bright red from being sunburnt but also because of how embarrassed I felt.

     "I was sitting on the beach, and then I dozed off." I told them. "See, I'm sunburnt. That's prof that I wasn't kidnapped or something like that. But don't worry, David. I'm safe and sound. Plus I did the dishes for you."

     "Young lady," The police officer said. I turned to him. "Being kidnapped is not something we take lightly. And neither is being gone for so long that they have to call the police." His voice turned a bit harsh, and I flinched. 

     "We will make sure that we will call you when there is a real case this time, Officer Daniels." Kindred said. "Thank yuo for driving all the way out here."

     "The station is only 2 minuets away." Officer Daniels muttered under his breath.

     "Have a nice day!" Kindred said, sutibly pushing Officer Daniels out the door. Kindred watched him drive away and as soon as he was out of sight, she started bombarding me. 

     "What were you thinking, Nancy? We had to call Officer Daniels, and take up time he could've been spending at his house, with his family! Instead he had to come here only for you to be lying lazley on the beach like some person on vacation! 

     "Plus, there were probobly thousands of things around the house that you could be doing to help out with this household!" She paused to take a breath, and then continued talking again. "Out of the kindness of our hearts, we decided to take you in. If you want to go to a foster home thats fine but-" Kindred got cut off by David. 

     "Kindred, it's all right. Think of this as a, um, a practice round to having a teenage daughter!" He looked at me, then he looked back to Kindred. "And we are not putting her in a foster home. I made a promise to my parents to take care of her. That is exactly what we will do."

     In the end, Kindred persuaded David to ground me for tomorrow. I was fine with it -I knew that  must've given them quite a scare- because it meant I could do what Kindred said and "Help out with the household". Maybe Kindred would like me more.

     I went to bed early, and wondered how I could help Kindred and David with the household. I wondered if Kindred actually likes me. Unlike David, I could feel the bad vibes floating all around me when we were in the room together. I think David could feel it too, but ever since I arrived yesterday, he was always pushing us together. 

     The twins, Nina and Lena, seem happy with the fact that I am with them. So far they haven't cried when I have been around and they seem to already like me. A lot. 

     As I went to sleep, I reflected on the day. I thought about the beach incident, but I mostly thought about the family that I saw on the beach. I wondered if that was the way they really were all of the time. Or if it was a false front.

     I remembered a time where my parents tried to put on a false front, before they just stopped caring about what others thought of them. I only wish that they knew what they were walking into whenever they put on a false front. A life of lies, mystery and deceit.

     It was early August of last year whenever they started their false fronts. I remember it as clear as day, because this was around the time that mom started smoking and dad started gambling. They were now always out late, dad at casinos and mom at bars.

     As a 12 year old, I didn't know why they were going out every night. They always hired a babysitter (Like I even needed one), and the babysitter would always be on their phone, either talking all baby-like to their boyfriend or watching Tic Tok. 

     But then my parents started taking me out, and acting like we were a happy family, but the moment the door closed and we were alone, they acted all mean again. Mom and Dad would fight, and when they went out again, the false front would be there.

     But then their money problems became worse. And so did they. The little bit of money that Dad won from gambling, he used it on 2 things: more gambling, or beers. And the little money Mom made at her job as a cashier went to cigarettes or groceries. But that only consisted of pre-made ramen or mac n' cheese.

     And now that they are divorcing, I hope that they see what money wasters they have been. And I hope that they don't make the same mistake. I also wish that they could get back together again, even when I know that they will not. They can't be in the same room together.

     But the second thing I thought of made my parents seem nice. It was Kindred. I was wondering if she put on a false front. Or is she just normally this rude? I would have to find out in the morning. I hope that David and Kindred won't split like Mom and Dad only for their daughter's sake.

     Kindred has the word Kind in it. But Kindred doesn't seem to be very kind. Don't get me wrong, if a 13 year old I'd never met before suddenly walked into my life and I was expected to take care of it like my own daughter, I would be in shock. I wonder if Kindred was in shock too.

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     When I woke up, it was rainy. Thunder shook the sky, and the rain pelted hard on the roof. David and Kindred had already left for work, and the twins left for daycare. There was a note from Kindred that read "Do better than yesterday. I'm trying to help you."

     I didn't care about the note. Kindred just wrote that to make sure I didn't forget. But I had a plan. I would do the dishes, make sure that all of the rooms in the house were tidy and clean. Then I would do the laundry. I made my bed and put on a pair of leggings and an undershirt. With my hair in a ponytail, it was time to conquer. 

     It was time to clean.