Home

"Mom, Dad, I'm home," Lillian kicked off her shoes and dragged herself to the sofa and face planted into the soft cushions, sinking away from all of the day's troubles.

"Oh, welcome home Lily, rough day at work?" Her mom walked into the room with a box of matches in her hand. She bent down next to the fireplace, and lit a match, flaming a small fire to life.

"Yeah," Lillian turned her head to face her mom. "Just glad it's the weekend, so I can rest for a couple days at home." What she didn't say is that she didn't want the weekend to ever end, dreading her next week at work.

"That's our hardworking baby girl," her mom came over to sit next to her on the sofa and gently stroked her hair. "Dad and I are going our for a little Valentine's date soon, will you be alright on your own for dinner?"

"I at least know how to cook, mom."

"I know dear. I'm just worried about you. You're looking tired today."

"Work was just a bit busier than usual today, I'll be fine after I take a shower. Have fun on your date," Lillian turned over and hugged her mom.

"We should be back before 10, but if not, make sure you grab an extra blanket before bed tonight. I saw on the news that a winter storm was forecast to begin around 1am tonight."

"Yes, ma'am," Lillian replied in a playful voice. She got up to go the shower, then turned around and again wished her mom a fun date.

—-

'John, I think we need to call an exorcist.' A young woman said to the man on screen.

'Kakakakakakahahahaaaaaaa———' The toddler appeared crawling on the ceiling and twisted its head 180 degrees around to face its parents with wide black eyes.

Ah, horror movies are the best to unwind after a stressful week at work. Lillian sat curled up under a blanket on the sofa, warming up next to the fire. She was watching horror films on her laptop while eating some cheesy potato chips she had found in the pantry.

After the movie was over, she went over to the fireplace to make sure the fire was out. She took the blanket and went to her bedroom to sleep for the night.

In her dream that night.

"A mop and broom? Ha, what a silly joke!" She mockingly laughed at her cold CEO and did a backflip in the air. "Nothing can stop me, the ultimate queen of the Geldan Group!"

"Heh, we'll see about that," the Andrew in her dream flashed a sinister smile then snapped his fingers with haste. The next moment a bright light flashed and a giant mop and broom appeared out of thin air.

"Trash can sensei," the two cleaning supplies screeched in unison. The inanimate objects suddenly became animate and started shuffling their way towards Lillian, moving faster and faster with every step. Closer and closer until they came right up to her face.

"Aah!" Lillian woke up suddenly from her nightmarish dream, her heart beating hard in her chest. After taking a moment to calm down, she breathed out a deep sigh. A cloudy vapor of cold breathe appeared then dissipated in the air in front of her.

Huh? Lillian reached out for her cellphone to check the time, but as she took her hand out from the warmth of the blanket a shocking cold froze her fingertips. Quickly she grabbed her phone and pulled her hand back under the covers. 4:55am. I should go back to bed. She wrapped her blanket over her head and tried to go back to sleep when a creaking noise was heard coming from the walls.

The noise made it harder to fall back asleep, but she closed her eyes and managed to doze off back into dreamland. The Q street taco truck was giving out tacos ten times their normal size.

"Lillian, get up and put on some warm layers! We need your help out here!" Her mom's frantic voice woke her up from her taco paradise.

"What?" She looked back at her with sleepy eyes.

"Get your clothes on and come out quickly. It looks like the pipes burst with the extreme cold the storm brought with it. The plumbers are all busy with other houses and the roads are too icy to go out right now."

She got up and put on some warm, thick socks, and 3 layers of sweaters. When she got to the kitchen where the main pipe burst, she saw her dad frantically trying to tape up the leak as her mother was busy cleaning up water from the floor. Lillian got on the floor to help her mom for a few minutes, when they heard a rushing water sound coming from the bathroom. Another pipe had burst there, so Lillian spent her morning there, sopping up water and dumping it in the tub.

The plumber finally arrived around 11am, he managed to shut off the water and get the leaks under control, but already enough damage had been done. He surveyed the work that needed to be done, then handed her parents a piece of paper detailing the timeline of repairs and how much they would cost.

"Lily, pack yourself some clothes for the next few days. We're going to check into to a hotel until the house is livable again."

"Hm, ok." Lillian noticed the look of concern on her mom's and dad's face ever since the plumber handed them that paper. She then sleepily made her way to her room to put a bag together.

Hotels usually have restaurants, right? I'll treat mom and dad to a nice meal tonight, maybe that will lift their mood. She hummed to herself as she put in some work clothes, sweatpants, and a nice long sleeve blouse into her bag.