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Chapter 8.17: Dear Diary, Mrs. Hill in the Suburbs

Dear Diary, things with the girls seem to be getting better since our move to Gladena. For a while there, I didn’t know if we would make it. I should have had more faith in my family’s strength because we’ve sort of settled into a nice groove.

The girls had yogurt for breakfast this morning, and I actually got them to take their little cartoon shaped vitamins. Gigi will officially be a teen in a few days, so I have to read up to see if she should keep taking that vitamin or something else.

Clean up this morning was easy. As I stood admiring the clean sink, I heard more yelling from next door. The Edwards family was at it again. I don’t know what the deal is over there. Part of me wants to find out while the other part of me wants to mind my own business since I have problems in our own family.

By the time I started my daily run on the treadmill, everything was quiet over from the Edwards’ way.

I was just about done mowing the lawn when Molly Hill from across the street came over.

Let me tell you about Mrs. Molly Hill.

She is weird. It seems like every time she spots me outdoors, she’s rushing over, waving at me, her skinny arm about to fall off from the crazy movement.

“Hi, Kai,” she said as she approached me.

I still had a patch of grass to mow, but I turned the mower off with a nearly silent sigh. I knew from recent experience that Molly would keep trying to talk to me even if I kept mowing and couldn’t hear her.

“Oopsie,” she slurred as she hopped up onto the mower.

The hood of the mower was hot, yet she didn’t seem to notice. Instinctually, I jumped back as she leaned sideways, her butt precariously planted on the hood, and reached down near my groin to lean on the steering wheel.

“Whoa, what are you doing?” I asked, the familiar heat flushing to my cheeks.

“Oh, sorry. I thought I dropped my keys.”

“Have you been drinking?”

“Only a little. Say, do you want to come over? We could have a drink together.”

For Pete’s sake. It was all I could do not to show her how annoyed I really was.

“I really don’t drink that much, and it’s pretty early in the day, anyway. Oh! I just heard one of my girls calling for me from inside.”

“I didn’t hear anything.”

That’s because I’m lying, I thought.

“Well, I need to see what she needs. So, see ya’.”

With that, I made my hasty exit indoors where it was safe.

Slowly, I realized I was kind of a prisoner inside my own home because Weird Molly would stand inside the windows of her house, staring. If I went out to get the mail or take care of something outdoors that needed my attention, she was there, throwing herself at me.

I wanted to move back home more than ever. At least there, I could move about freely without a Weird Molly trying to get my attention at every turn.

A few days later, it was Gigi’s birthday. We were all bummed that my parents and Vincent’s family couldn’t be with us, but we made the best of it.

Throughout the evening, I could tell Gigi missed Wes sharing in her special day. At one point she caught my eye, and it was as if I could read her like a book. She gave me a small smile, and bucked up. She’s strong like her mama.

Our usual cheering was awkward, and quiet, compared to earlier years.

Finally, a giant, genuine smile crossed her face. She loved that she was getting piano lessons the most. But she was just as pleased with the bike we got her, too. Someday, I hope we’ll be getting her a motorcycle.

Oops, I said that out loud and got a glare from Jade. That would be a no to the motorcycle.

In the back of my mind, I imagined moving back home near my family and our friends, and having big birthday parties again.

Afterwards, I put the left over cake in the fridge, and my heart felt heavy. We’d never had left over cake before. Somehow, I had to put these thoughts of our previous home away. Dwelling on them wasn’t fair. Not if I was trying to settle into our new home in earnest.

Other thoughts… How did I, such an ordinary-looking guy, get blessed with such a beautiful daughter? Thank goodness she looks like Jade.

An Excerpt from the Diary of Georgia Seaforth

Dear Diary, I’ve known for a while that I’m going to take over as heir of our long-standing tradition of diary keeping. To be honest, I wasn’t very interested in the whole thing until my dad gave me access to all the diaries from previous generations. He said it’s my duty to read the diaries and decide how my diary is going to be kept.

So, over several months, I read every diary beginning with Memphis Noble, all the way through to my dad. He’s such a dork. But Memphis, she was something else! When she began, she wrote about her fears of not measuring up. I cried hard when I read about the loss of her daughter Jilly. And, I felt so bad for Leo, too. By the end of her journal, Memphis was completely changed. She was confident, and loved where she was in life.

If I’m being honest, I’m glad I don’t have to take over yet. This is kind of a practice journal for me.

What does one write in a diary? After going through all the previous diaries, you’d think I’d have an idea.

This is my sister Sophie. She’s quite a bit younger than me, so I try to be a good sister and help her when she needs it.

What age is it when kids are supposed to know how to tie their own shoes, I wonder?

Eh, never mind. It’s not like I mind helping her or anything.

Afterward, we do our secret little cheer.

Since my birthday, I’ve realized that I’m in between. You know, too young to go to rated R movies or wear makeup, but old enough to want to. It’s a strange place to be stuck.

I’m also old enough to know that there’s something strange going on between my dad and Mrs. Hill, but too young to do anything about it. Whatever is going on, it makes me feel uncomfortable in my stomach.

When I called my dad’s name, to make my presence known, I was satisfied to see him look at me, relief in his eyes. He excused himself and went inside with me.

If I thought an explanation of the strangeness was coming, I was wrong. Dad never spoke about it to me.

He’s still writing the diary, so maybe someday, I’ll get to read that part and find more out.

Until then, this is Just Geeg, signing off. xo

A special thanks goes to Bee (Poses by BeeStories by Bee) for the beautiful poses! You can find them here: Teens – Caring For Young Ones.

Thank you so much for reading, liking, lurking, and commenting! I hope you enjoyed today’s chapter! See you Wednesday for another installment of Meet the Neighbors (the Hills are up next!), and next Saturday at 10am (EST) for the next chapter of Noble Doubt!

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Kymber Hawke
Kymber Hawkehttps://booomcha.com/
I am a simmer, Rennie garb wearer, author, and dog petter. Judy Garland is my queen, horror movies & classic movies are my jam. INFJ with "Unity Hayes" as a pseudonym. A little bit eccentric, owned by two cats, Cesare & Josie-Pye. 🐱🐱

41 COMMENTS

  1. Wow, so much to take in for this chapter. First off, Mrs. Hill is horrible! What she needs is a reality check. I hope sooner than later, Kai gets sick of her antics and puts her in her place. This is not a good situation.

    Such a bittersweet birthday, too. I don’t blame Kai for being homesick, poor guy.

    I had to chuckle at Gigi thinking Kai is a dork. Well, he kinda is, but aren’t all Dads dorks every now and again? Mine was the dorkiest dork ever…and I miss him. 🙁 Well, she’s a teen though and teens aren’t always the most sensitive of people. Maybe in time when she matures, she’ll have more of an appreciation and a bit more sympathy for him.

    It was nice to see her helping Sophie though. She seems like she’s a great big sister. 🙂

  2. Mrs. Hill is so annoying, I can’t stand her. Poor Kai to be dealing with her. I feel like Georgia looks a lot better as a kid than as a child, her eyes looked somewhat weird on a much smaller face. But she’s really pretty.

    • Thank you so much. I’m glad you’re intrigued by this crazy neighborhood. Hopefully, your son finds it easier to understand over time that moving on is sometimes necessary.

  3. Oh goodness, and I thought my neighbors are a bit much! 🤣

    I really love the idea of keeping a family journal that gets shared and passed on.

  4. Ooof, Molly Hill is a mouthful. 😬 I sure hope that Kai explains to his daughter what’s happening. Honestly, he should just generally do something about that woman, she’s pretty stalkery and then there’s that bit of sexual harassment right there. 😒 What a neighbourhood they’ve ended up in!

    • Thank you, Louise. 🙂 You’re so right about Molly Hill. lol Yes! You’re also right about the sexual harassment. Hopefully, Gigi will be told what’s happened so that she’ll understand her dad was not out of order. As for the neighborhood, you got that right! I guess it’s true what they say about not really knowing what goes on behind closed doors.

  5. I can’t wait to find out who will sort Mrs.Hill out. My bet is on Jade. I only hope things in Kai’s household improve more. Otherwise I’d be worried he might slip and forget himself with one of his female neighbours. A lack of attention from your partner can lead to that.

    • Thank you so much. You are right about what can happen with lack of attention from your partner. Mrs. Hill definitely needs to be sorted out. 😀

  6. Sigh… Molly needs to realize that Kai is clearly uninterested. If Gigi gets involved in this, there’s sure to be trouble for Molly! I’d hate to see what she’d do.

  7. Oh no.. i hope geegee doesnt jump the gun on her dad and Mrs Hill. Kai is trying really hard and this Ms Hill needs to go back to her own hill. Geegee is old enough to want explanations and notice that things can protray one way but look another. Im so excited to see her thoughts.

    • Thank you so much. I can see what you mean about seeing things one way when they mean another. Hopefully, she let’s Kai deal with it without interfering. We shall soon see. 😀

  8. Those shorts LOL. That woman is a piece of work. I feel for Kai like everyone else, but maybe he should be a bit more firm with her. Staying out there and letting her talk only encourages her.
    I’m surprised she would think her dad is a dork after reading his journal. I mean…he is kind of a dork LOL. But I thought learning about his past would make her sympathetic. Meh. She’s a teen. He’ll always be a dork LOL.

    • LOL Thank you, Jess. She is definitely a piece of work. I think you’re right that Kai should be firm with her instead of talking to her. (See this Wednesday’s installment of MTN for more on that. 😀 ) I think in time, Gigi will be more sympathetic toward Kai; you’re right she’s a teen. lol

  9. Now that Georgia’s older, I wonder if he can get a job that will take him outside the house. Just something that won’t have hin there 24/7.
    And that woman sure is something.

  10. I want cartoon-shaped vitamins! Also, that is one hell of a funky treadmill. Very futuristic!

    I have a feeling they’re going to get mixed up in the Edwards family and what’s happening over there… As for Molly Hill, yikes. Run, Kai, run!

    I love that Georgia’s putting pen to paper with a diary. Just imagine how interesting it would be if your family, perhaps going back a couple of generations, kept diaries. I’ve seen it happen in films but I’ve always wondered what it would be like in real life to get such an intimate glimpse into family you perhaps didn’t know, into a life you had no idea of or a time period you never lived in. xx

    • Thanks, Caz! I want cartoon shaped vitamins, too. When I was a child, I had Flintstones vitamins. lol I remember them not tasting very good and being a bit chalky.

      I noticed that about Kai’s treadmill, too. You should have seen him when he first started using it. He would fall off of it. Bit of a disaster. But it was hysterical. haha

      They very well might get mixed up with the Edwards’ problems. Let’s hope they can handle it if they do. I’m telling Kai to run from Weird Molly, too! lol

      I love Georgia so much. I can’t imagine reading diaries from past family members, but I think I wish they’d kept them. It’s fun writing this story, seeing what each generation was like. Leo and Blue are still favorites of mine. I wish they could have lived forever. xo

  11. Yep! I knew Weird Molly would be gunning for the handsome Kai! Poor guy though. He didn’t ask for any of this and is trying to get out of it without causing a scene. And the sad thing is Gigi is noticing her unwanted attention, but I hope the relief she saw In her father’s face made her realize the attention was unwanted. Yay for a beautiful new heir! Kai is right, she’s going to be a knock out just like her mom. I’m glad she’s reading the old diaries! It’s got to give her strength to face whatever you’re gonna throw at her! Lol…

    • LOL Thanks, Audrey. How’d you know I was going to throw something major at her? 😀 hehehehe

      Yeah, at least Weird Molly isn’t getting anywhere with Kai. I hope Gigi realizes the attention is unwanted, too.

      Those old diaries… hopefully, she learns a lot from them.

  12. I feel very very bad for Kai ! Not just about the creepy neighbour, but everything. I wonder, will he ever be happy? And I’m looking forward to Geeg finally figuring out what to write in her diary, because I know her thoughts are going to be very insightful. I loved what she said about Memphis, especially because she nailed it on the head so well.

    Wondering if this neighbour has a husband of her own?? Perhaps Kai needs to have a chat with him about his wife. I know what it is like to be a “prisioner” in your own home because of neighbours and I wouln’t go back to the sculking around and being quiet just so I could go outside! That woman is so deathly thin my eyes widened when I opened the chapter to edit. Now even though she is a pain, I hope we get to see a few more of her antics…I really wouldn’t mind seeing how far she will go….Oops I thought I dropped my keys! hahahahaha, good one Kymber!

    • Thank you, Bee. I feel bad for Kai, too. He even still refers to the old house as “back home.” He can’t let go. Oh yeah, Geeg is going to be a lot of fun. I honestly can’t wait!

      Molly’s husband is a scientist and he’s quite busy so she gets bored. I think that’s a great idea to have Kai speak to him. You can’t pick your neighbors, that’s for sure. lol LOL @ your eyes widening when you opened the chapter to edit. haha I will see about more antics. I think Kai has had enough. LOLOLOL

      • Mrs Hill needs to take a hint and leave Kai alone! Happy birthday Gigi! I got a little misty-eyed and whimpered when she mentioned Memphis, Leo, and the pain of Jilly’s death.😭 I loved her first entry into the family journal <3

        • Thank you, Hilly. Yes, leave Kai alone already! 😀 I will admit, I got misty-eyed, too. Jilly’s death was so tragic. I’m glad you loved her first entry in the journal. ❤

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