#09 Grandma's Mansion

I packed all of the necessary stuff into the luggage mother provided for me, and zipped up the zipper to close it. To be honest, I didn't feel like leaving this room that I grew up in. But just thinking that I would be free from mother's harsh orders everyday lightened my mood a little.

My sister came to my room to help me as soon as she was done with her own packing.

"I hate this." She said while she packed my toiletries. "All my dresses had to be folded and get wrinkled in this damn luggage."

I walked over to get her furrowed brows fixed by flicking her forehead.

"Ouch! What was that for?"

Sigh.

I went to her room while she was packing my luggage for me.

"Well, it can't be helped. You can't expect us to bring the dresses on hangers--" Just when I was saying that, I was shocked when I saw all of her clothes hanging up with hangers.

"Do you really plan to bring it all like that?"

"Yes. Is there a problem about that?" She replied innocently.

I took a deep breath, and told her that it is impossible to fit that all in the car. Well, at least not for the car Alice drives in.

She took my advice and folded them into her luggage, with her lower lip protruded into a sulky pout.

Once she was done with the folding, she kept it into her luggage and stared for a while, before looking at me.

"Hmm…. flat enough. Now your turn. Get yourself in." She said and sneered at me. "Just so you know, grandma dislikes pancakes as much as father does, so we won't be having pancakes there."

Pancakes! Why haven't I thought of that? If I did, I might reject going to grandma's place…. No, I wouldn't sacrifice my ears hearing mother everyday in exchange for the pancakes.

When we were ready to leave, we took our luggage down to the door and waited for Alice.

Before leaving, mother returned our phones and the first thing we did was to take out our power banks, and charged our phones that were near their deaths.

It takes hours to reach grandma's place by car, so Alice prepared some snacks beforehand, just in case any of us got hungry on the way.

We got into the car when Alice opened the doors with the car keys, while mother stood at the door, sending us off.

"Drive safe."

"Yes, my lady."

Alice buckled her safety belt and so did we. I sat in a most comfortable position possible, getting ready for a nap.

"Be careful not to slip out of the belt from below while you sleep, pancake."

Hey! It's not that serious, okay?

The car is serviced often so the air conditioner is always cool, good for a long nap. While Alice was driving, she chatted with us. When I realized I wouldn't see Alice in a while, I started sobbing.

"Amanda, are you a baby?"

My sister teased me despite crying herself. I didn't know what to do. Alice has always been there for me ever since I was very little, so separating with her now feels a bit, sad….. I'm sure my sister feels the same way as I do.

"Beautiful Misses, please do not miss me too much and focus on your studies while you are there."

"Okay…."

Although Alice was facing the road while driving, I could still see her pure smile from the reflection in the mirror.

I had a great nap in the car while we were on our way to grandma's place. I've never visited her, not even once, so I have no idea about what her mansion would look like.

I watched the scenery outside of the car window as I slowly fell asleep. I woke up when Alice was calling me.

"We have arrived, Miss."

Already? But I was just about to start dreaming.

I got off the car and walked towards where my sister was, while dragging my feet on the ground lazily. I was surprised when I saw my sister was already carrying my luggage for me. I took a look around the area of the mansion, and realized how large a mansion it is.

'It's so much bigger than ours..'

"Should we ring the bell?" I asked while my hand reached for the doorbell.

Ding dong!

Alice already pressed it for us before I even had the chance to. A voice can be heard from the intercom, and it was an old lady's voice.

"Please wait for a moment."

The front gates opened slowly and we could see an old lady coming to us. I assumed it was grandma since my sister greeted her.

"Andrea, right? Luckily I remember your name. Is she your friend?"

"No, grandma. She is my younger sister I mentioned to you last time."

"Younger sister…." Grandma looked at me from top to bottom. Does she not believe what my sister just said?

"Come on in. I have tea ready for you."

"Then I shall take my leave. Take care." Alice said and she drove the car away as we waved.

We took a step into the mansion, and the entire atmosphere was so different. It was so much better and larger compared to our's. The gardens were large with butterflies flying around the flowers.

I looked around the place as we advanced forward.

"Feel free to take any flowers you like." Grandma said to me when she realized I was interested in them.

"No need, thank you."

Soon, we reached a corridor full of rooms. From the outside, it looked like a hotel. But it's actually just her mansion, so large that it could fit many rooms.

"Is grandma not living alone?" I whispered to my sister as soft as I could so grandma wouldn't hear me. However, it seems like I underestimated her hearing.

"I used to live together with my family. But as they grew up, they got married and left this place. Even though it's lonely to be all alone in this big of a place, as long as I can mend my gardens, I don't feel lonely anymore."

So grandma likes gardening, huh. Common hobby for old folks.

Grandma opened one of the adjoining rooms and told us we could use it.

"These are your rooms. Leave your things in there and come to the dining room for a snack."

"Thank you."

The spacious room was meant for one person, as it is a single bedroom. There is plenty of space despite having so much furniture in the room.

I explored the room before leaving for the dining room. Snacks are important for my daily life, but exploring new rooms is much more fun to me.

I opened the enormous wardrobe, only to find it filled with beautiful clothes.

'Are these her daughter's? She has the same size as me.'

Next, I went to the bathroom. The doors are made of glass, and there is a tub provided. The sinks are just nice for my height too. Not too high, not too low.

I continued exploring the other parts of the room, and of course, the curtains too.

I dived into the comfy queen-sized bed, and wrapped myself in the blanket. It's a very nice and warm blanket, suitable for a good sleep at night.

When I was finally satisfied with my 'adventure', I tried going to my sister's room through the adjoining door. Unfortunately, she opened the door first before I was even able to reach the doorknob.

"Hey, you're finally done exploring?"