The Babysitter and the Sisterly Trio/ChapterVIII

The next day is Monday, and I wake up pretty early - the sun is barely coming up. I stumble into the kitchen to make myself some coffee.

A half hour or so later, I hear a car pull into the driveway. Mike and Laura are home.

I open the front door and wave to them. "Welcome home!" I say.

"Hello, Rei." Laura calls back while Mike opens the trunk and gets their suitcases. "How were the girls? Not too much trouble I hope!"

"Nah, they were on their best behavior." I tell them. "Riley and I played in the snow, I played some make-believe with Tera, and Evy and I played with some of her toys."

Mike sets down the suitcases and puts an arm around his wife's shoulders.

"Heh, you're really good with kids, Rei" says Mike. "Did they go to bed at a good time last night?"

"Of course, I didn't let them stay up because it was a school night." I tell them. "They're all still sleeping."

I pause for a moment, then have an idea. "You two look exhausted. I'm already awake, and I have some work to get done this morning. Why don't you go to bed? I can get the girls ready for school for you."

They look at each other, hesitant but clearly wanting to take me up on my offer.

"You sure it's not too much trouble?" Laura asks. "We were planning on taking the rest of the day off and staying at home today."

"Of course not." I tell them. "I really don't mind. Go get some sleep, you look dead on your feet!"

They thank me profusely before heading inside, quietly going upstairs with their suitcases in toe.

I head back into the den and get some work done for an hour or two. Around 7AM I close my laptop and head upstairs. I lightly knock on each girl's door. "Time to get up." I tell them. "Get dressed and come downstairs for breakfast."

I head back downstairs and start making their breakfast. Tera is the first to come down. She covers a yawn and plops down at the kitchen table. Riley isn't far behind her, and Evy makes her way down to join us a few minutes later.

"Where's mom and dad?" Riley asks with a big yawn.

"They were exhausted, so I told them I'd get you guys off to school before I went back home." I replied. "You'll see them when you get home from school. They're not going into work today."

The girls eat their breakfast quietly. I guess none of them are really morning people. I pack their lunches and make sure they don't forget their backpacks.

"Remember, your parents are home today so go to your house after school."

Evy pouts. "Does that mean we won't get to see you today?" she asks.

I pat her on the head. "I'll tell you what. If you promise to work really hard in school today, I'll work really hard to get all my work done, too. Then, if it's okay with your parents, I can come over and hang out later tonight. Deal?"

Evy's face lights up, and Tera and Riley also smile. "Okay! Deal!~" Evy shouts.

I see the girls off, waving to them as they get on the bus. Then I head inside their house to pack up the rest of my things and carry them back home.

I have a lot of work to get done before I can hang out with the girls later, so I get started right away...

[Later that day...]

* The phone rings.

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