From Rags to Riches.

I walked down the stairs , still feeling paranoid. I'm kinda used to getting watched , but its the fact that I heard whispers . I really need to talk to someone about this.

"FINALLY! I woke you up over two hours ago & you're just now getting down here. You take more time than a girl." Maria said , while making some hot cocoa. I licked my lips , her hot cocoa has to be the best damn cocoa ever .

"Maria , you know I overly think which causes me to lose track of time. Plus , I'm not one of those nasty kind of boys who just throw on clothes without showering. " I said .

"Still! Most boys who aren't like that STILL manage to get down here in under an hour."

I stared at her , slowly blinking. She did have a point there. Darn it.

"HA. I win , Maria 1 . Andreas , 0 ." She said , sticking her tongue out. I swear , she acts like a little kid at times.

"When's that hot cocoa gonna be ready?" I just had to say. It was making me drool by how good it sounded.

"In about 5 minutes."

I nodded , as my thoughts began to stray. Those whispers were probably part of my imagination. Yeah , that's it. But , they sounded so real though. Plus, no matter how hard I'd try , my voice would never go that deep. I tried . . and failed miserably.

"Andreas." Maria said , snapping her fingers.

"Hum?"

"Whats wrong? You've seen so out of it the last couple of weeks." She said , sitting down and placing the cocoa in front of me.

"Oh, nothing." I said , wrapping my hands around to warm them up.

"Okay then. If you ever need someone to talk to , I'm here for you. Okay hun?" She said , looking unconvinced.

"Okay."

After that , we just sat in a comfortable silence. I'm pretty sure if I told Maria what was going on , she'd probably send me to an insane aslyum. Or a doctor. I snapped my head up when I noticed a ball bouncing in the kitchen. Which knocked over a couple of glasses on the countertops.

"NICKI! What have I told you about bouncing balls in the house?!" Maria said , while going to clean up the mess.

"I'm sorry , Marwia." Nicki mumbled , with tears appearing in her eyes.

Maria sighed , "It's okay , Nicki. Just don't bounce them anymore ,okay?"

"YAY! " She turned around to run out , but she finally noticed I was in the room.

"ANDY!" She yelled , then launched herself at me.

"Nicki-poo! How are you?" I said , while smiling. You just smile everytime you're around her. She's too adorable.

"Good. Me and Koby were having a race."

"Ohhh , sounds fun." I said , slightly confused. How do you have a race with bouncy balls?

Then , the doorbell ringed. That's weird , who would be here so early?

"Andreas , could you get that for me please?" Maria shouted from the storage closet.

"Sure!" I shouted back. I let Nicki down and watched her run away. I shook my head , that girl has too much energy.As I was passing by the window , I noticed 3 very expensive looking cars. Huh , that's even more weird. I finally arrived at the door.

"Can I help . . ."

Oh My Gosh . was all I could think.