บท 3: Chapter 3: Clean up.
Edward POV.
"So, can you drive me to the grocery store?" I badgered Phil, who had just finished his open house.
"I have to go pick up my daughter after her cello practice, so I don't-"
"What time do you need to pick her up?" I cut him off again.
I knew that Phil had a soft spot for struggling kids. That's why he used to take care of his neighbor's kid before.
He looked quite reluctant before he agreed. I guess he was guilty about badmouthing my house to the owner's face.
He was kind enough to treat me like an equal, and I felt a little bad for manipulating him, but if I needed to stay at that house, I couldn't let the situation there stay the same.
"At 4.30," Phil replied and glanced at his watch.
"That's fine. I will only be there for a few minutes. I need to grab a few things to clean the house. Your advice is great. I can't wait to use it." I buttered him up.
He broke into a smile and said, "Okay. But I will bring my son with me. He loves going to the grocery store."
It was the weekend, so the kids didn't go to school. Incidentally, this was also when my dad had the most jobs, so I couldn't formally meet him until Monday.
"Luke? I just met him earlier." I said.
"Cool. Then I don't have to introduce you guys." Phil said and walked to his car– a Toyota sedan. "Wait. Don't you have to tell your dad about this?" he asked.
"No, it's fine," I answered. "You should pick up Luke first and then stop by. I need to do something first."
Phil looked at the opened-wide door on my house and nodded before he drove away.
Reluctantly, I returned to my house to pick up my money and took out the trash along the way. I peeked at the fridge to see nothing inside. Not even bottled water. The fridge was totally empty, except for some beers.
I checked for my necessities and found out that I was living as if I was inside a camp. "I need a new toothbrush and toothpaste."
Luckily, my dad bought me an iPhone, no doubt as an act to buy my love, as he couldn't be there for me much. I listed the things I needed to buy and took some cash from my dad's hiding place. "200 bucks will be enough. I think."
I texted my dad about the expense, as I am responsible.
I needed to change my shirt as I was sweating a lot while playing in the streets. I wore a relatively new grey shirt and some jeans after I took a light shower to clean the sweat from my body.
-Dunphy's house.-
"Luke. We're going to the grocery store!" Phil said excitedly as he took off his work blazer. He changed into a collared shirt with a horizontal purple and black pattern.
From upstairs, Luke replied, "Okay. I just need to put on some pants."
With a laundry basket in her hand, Claire showed up in front of Phil as he waited for Luke by the stairs.
"Why?" Claire asked with a suspicious expression. "I just went to the store this morning."
"Nothing. I just need a few things. And I need to get…Alex'ssss…." Phil stammered and couldn't continue. His head moved as he lengthened his last word, blinking a few times anxiously.
Claire nodded in understanding and didn't continue her interrogation, "Just don't play too much at the massage chair, all right? I don't want you and Luke to be kicked out again."
Phil watched her leave and then breathed a sigh of relief. Luke came down while wearing multiple pants at the same time.
"Luke buddy. That's awesome." Phil laughed as he watched Luke's tight legs.
"If I wear enough pants, it won't hurt when I fall on the floor again," Luke said.
"Yeah, but what about your elbows and your body?" Phil asked. "And your head?"
"Ugh. That's right!" Luke replied.
Claire swooped in like a ninja before the situation worsened. "Luke. Only one pair of pants." She gives a stern look at Phil, "Honey."
Phil avoided her eyes and turned to Luke, "Maybe next time, buddy."
…
Edward POV
"Hey, you clean up nice." Phil smiled excitedly as he rolled his car windows down. With my hair combed and my face washed, I almost looked like a different guy. Instead of leaving my hair like Zac Efron –with the bangs, I pulled it back and styled it to make it seem less childish.
"Hop in. Let's go." Phil said excitedly.
"Okay." I entered the car and found Luke in the back seat. "Why don't you sit in the front?" I asked curiously.
"Haley won't let me. She will kill me if I do." Luke replied in a childish voice. "Also, this is your house?" Luke asked as he saw the horrible sight. "It looks like a horror mansion." He said excitedly.
"Luke. Don't be rude." Phil interjected.
"No, no. That was exactly what I was going for." I said, as I knew Luke didn't have any bad intentions. "But I couldn't let it stay this way any longer, so burn the sight in your mind before it disappears."
I sat next to Luke in the backseat and pulled the seatbelt. "Nice job, buddy. Safety first." Phil complimented me.
I couldn't tell him I was afraid of riding in cars, right? That's why I only had a scooter in my previous life. My heart always palpitates when I'm inside a car, but that feeling didn't transmigrate with me in my new life.
"Thank god." I blurted out, and the feeling of relief washed me over.
"What do you say, buddy?" Phil asked.
"Nothing. Is the grocery store far away?"
"We'll be there in 5 minutes."
Quickly, we arrived at the grocery store. Luke and Phil played with the trolley, hitting each other with it while I continuously put some stuff inside it.
"I need eggs, flour, cooking oil, and milk," I muttered as I finished taking care of my necessities. A new towel, some fresh produce, and many cleaning utensils. Phil stood before the 'Uncle ben' cookie section and yelled, "Noo. Uncle Ben!"
I played along, "Peter…Remember...With great power…."
Phil continued, "Comes great electricity bill."
"Hahaha. Dad… that's gold." Luke guffawed loudly at the side. Even I chuckled a bit at the joke.
After a short time, put the stuff in the trolley.
"Buddy, you're sure about this? That's a lot of stuff." Phil asked as the trolley was half full.
"Yeah. I've been calculating the price in my mind. I think I will still have 1.79$ (One dollar 79 cents) after I finish."
"Wait. You can calculate in your mind?" Luke asked, his impression of me seemingly becoming much better.
"Yeah, buddy. Are you sure? There is also a tax factor…." Phil said he, too, was impressed. Not by my mathematical skill but by my commitment to calculating the entire time I'm shopping.
"Also, 1.79$? Are you sure? That's very specific." Phil asked challengingly.
"Want to bet?" I smirked.
Phil smiled and nodded slightly before he answered, "Okay. If you're correct, I will give you… this hat." He pulled out a funny-looking hat from the counter and put it on his head. It was a white fedora with a big fake diamond on it, or at least I think it was a diamond.
"Not that. If I am right, then buy me some soda." I said, not wanting much. "No hat?" Phil reluctantly said.
"No," I replied decisively. We got to the cashier, and he started to scan my items. "Come on. Come on." Phil muttered as he watched the price getting nearer and nearer to the target.
"198 is the mark," Phil muttered. Even Luke started to chant beside Phil. The duo was really similar to each other.
Cashier: Final price is 199.71 $
"OWH! SO CLOSE!" Phil exclaimed. "Better luck next time, buddy. You only have a balance of 29 cents now."
"Wait. You need to minus 1.5$ from my total." I said. "Add that to my balance, and it will be 1.79$. So, I am right."
"Buddy, it doesn't matter if you're wrong. As long as you bring enough money." Phil tried to comfort me, thinking that I really wanted the soda. Inwardly, he planned to go to a drive-through after this to buy some sodas and some food for us.
"That's not it. 1.5 $ cause of the candy bar Luke put in the trolley as he thought no one would notice." I said. Luke widened his eyes while Phil stared at him. "Luke. Is it true?"
"What? Aren't we going grocery shopping? Mom always buys me a candy bar after." Luke gave excuses as he started to rummage through the plastic bags to get his candy bar out. He played the situation innocently in front of his father, who almost got fooled.
"Yeah. But you do it without asking. I can buy you a candy bar. You don't have to hide it from me." Phil said.
It didn't bother me as it was only a candy, so before Phil scolded Luke, I interjected, "It's okay. Consider it a payment for him."
"That'll work," Luke said hurriedly.
"Payment for what?" Phil asked.
Phil and I walked side by side in the parking lot to get to his Toyota. Struggling a few meters behind us was Luke carrying all the bags alone.
"I shouldn't have agreed to do it. Ahh!" Luke groaned as he stepped briskly toward the car.
"Come on, buddy, just a few more steps." Phil encouraged him as he opened up the car bonnet. "I will never take a job from you again," Luke said angrily. I chuckled and said, "Really? Not even if the job is to eat cake?"
Luke became stunned and fell into deep contemplation. I chuckled and entered the car first.
"Oh shoot. We have to pick up Alex." Phil looked at his car clock and said hurriedly. Luke entered the car and shut the door.
"We shouldn't have done the massage chair, Luke!" Phil said anxiously.
The grocery stuff took only 20 minutes, and I knew what to buy. The rest of the time, Phil and Luke mess around in the grocery store.
Phil quickly exited the parking lot, "Edward, I will get you your soda later."
"It's okay," I replied.
"What about me?" Luke asked, wanting some soda, too, especially after the heavy work he'd just done.
"You already have your candy bar." I teased him. He sulked on his seat and crossed his arms. I patted his head and let out a laugh.
We arrived at Alex's music teacher's house in 20 minutes. Alex was already standing outside with her cello bag on the ground.
"Shoot. She looks angry." Phil said. He tried to take off his seatbelt, but it was stuck as he pulled on it too fast. "No, no, no." He muttered.
"Let me help Mr. Dunphy." I offered.
Phil was still struggling with his seatbelt. "Thank you, but I just need a few minutes to take this off-"
While he said that, I was already outside of the car.
"What?" Phil mumbled as he watched me walk toward Alex with widened eyes.
…
"Hi. Alex Dunphy, right?" I asked, pretending that I didn't know her.
A bit stunned by the sudden development, Alex crossed her arms and asked me in a guarded tone, "Newgate, right? Why did you come out of my dad's car?"
She did her hair in a ponytail and wore a long-sleeved yellow shirt. Her rectangular glasses really framed her face. She looked a bit older than the actress playing her in season 1. If compared, she was similar to the season 3 Alex right now.
"Your dad took me to the grocery store. You play the cello?" I asked as I helped her pick up the giant instrument.
"Why did he take you to the grocery store?" Alex squinted her eyes, even confused now. I smiled at her and opened up the back of the car.
"'cause he is a kind man," I replied and helped her load up the cello. The cello's giant size almost squashes my produce goods, but I don't care much about it. Food is food. It didn't matter if it was squashed.
Alex walked to the front seat next to the driver and asked Phil hurriedly, but in a whisper, "Why is he here?"
"He asked me for a favor. So, I helped him." Phil replied.
"You know he is a problem kid, right? Always late to class. Always absent. Rude." Alex complained.
"Really? But he is smart, though?" Phil asked, confused.
"Smart? What do you mean by smart? He is as dumb as Haley and Luke." Alex said while rolling her eyes. "If he is smart, that means Haley is also smart."
I entered the car during their argument without them noticing. "Mr. Dunphy, it's done," I said after watching them argue for a while.
"When did you get in?" Phil asked in shock.
"For a while now..." Luke said while laughing.
"Also, Alex, I'm sorry I was rude to you before in school," I said sincerely.
"Whatever." Alex crossed her arms and looked forward in the car to ignore me. Apparently, the previous me and she had crossed paths a few times in middle school.
Inside the car, Phil suddenly offered, "I will drop Alex off at the house, and then… we will go to your house. Luke and I will help you clean it up."
I saw the clock, and it was almost 5 in the evening. "No need Phil. The deal was to bring me to the store. I am thankful for the offer, but I think you should go and rest."
He has work today, so I didn't want to bother him anymore. He insisted, but I declined politely.
"Okay. If you are sure." Phil said, a bit sad. He liked spending time with Edward and didn't want it to end as he didn't know when was the next time he could do that again.
Alex rolled her eyes aside as she thought her dad wanted to play with the neighborhood kid.
We arrived in front of my god-forsaken house in no time.
"You live in this dump? It suits you." Alex said sarcastically. She didn't come out of the car even when Luke and Phil were helping me bring the groceries inside. I leaned next to her door, and she rolled down her windows slightly to talk… or mock.
"Come by a week later. Your dad taught me some stuff I will use to change this dump to a liveable place." I said, wanting to have a cigarette in my hand.
"Why would I ever come to your house?" Alex mocked.
"That's…true." I agreed.
I could handle speaking casually to Alex and the Dunphy because of their influence on me in my previous life. Although I'd entered their world, it's not like I was suddenly a part of their life.
The reason why I was so comfortable with them was the familiarity they exuded in my very being. Maybe the stress of transmigration…or maybe reincarnation was too much that I hid the insecurity and intrusive thoughts by being with my comfort characters.
I was also feeling a bit complicated inside – now that they were no longer actors and actresses that were acting, what should I think of them then. Will they still be a sitcom cast that I love, or my opinions on them would change once I saw things that weren't following the sitcom's character sheets?
'I do wish life would no longer be complicated in this one. But it's impossible, huh.' I thought.
Alex was taken aback as I agreed with her words, and the silence was suffocating her. She thought that I was hurt by her sarcastic remarks and insults.
The socially awkward teenager started to get anxious and wanted to make amends. She tapped on the window to call me, but I ignored her as I noticed Phil and Luke were done putting the stuff inside the house.
I turned to Alex before I walked to my house.
"By the way, Alex."
"What?"
"You're even cuter now."
I flashed a charming smile as I said that. She was flabbergasted and decided to call me names, but I'd already moved away from the car.
It's true, though. She was even cuter than in the tv series. Although similar to their actors and actresses, she and Luke also gained Claire and Phil's physical characteristics in the real world.
'I guess that makes sense because if they didn't look similar, people would've wondered if Claire cheated on Phil to get their children or adopt them from somewhere.'
"Remember. The recycling truck will come tomorrow, and the garbage truck on Monday and Thursday." Phil reminded me before he left.
I wanted to know when I would get the chance to meet them again.
Back in the house, I wore an apron, rubber gloves, and a hair protector, and I held a big trash bag in my left hand while facing my worst enemy, the messy house.
"Let's do this." I put on my playlist, or the previous Edward albums records, and lost myself in cleaning the house. The liquor bottles in front of the TV, vacuuming the sofa and sucking up all the Doritos fallen to its crack, dusting the ceiling fan, arranging the magazines, and just cleaning for hours.
*grulululu* (A/N: Sound effect lol)
My stomach let out a grumble as I continued cleaning the house non-stop. I was putting the laundry in the dryers when it happened.
"It's 9 o'clock. I should make some dinner." I muttered as I walked to the now clean kitchen. I opened the fridge and took out a steamed rice pack before putting it in the oven. I sliced some bacon and sausages before I prepared the onions, garlic, chilies, and other ingredients for fried rice. I blend all the mix together to create the seasoning.
When the pan was hot enough, I poured a little oil and started to fry the onion mix. After a while, a long-lost smell of homemade cooking began filling the house's air, pushing the musty wood smell away. I put the bacon and the sausages and fried them together with the onion mix before I put in the rice.
To top it off, I fried an egg and placed it on top of my fried rice.
"Uhh …Lacking," I muttered in dissatisfaction as I continued eating. After filling my stomach, I resume my work in cleaning the house. It took until 11 when I was satisfied enough to make this a place to stay for a night.
"I will continue cleaning the house, the backyard, and the front yard tomorrow," I muttered as I fell asleep on top of a fresh bed sheet I just took out from the dryer.
...
3rd party POV.
Stopping at the front door of the Newgate house, a tall, tanned man in a ship's captain outfit staggered drunkenly as he unlocked the door. Edward's father finally came home after working for the entire day. His work as a cruise ship captain didn't allow him to spend much time with his son, even if he wanted to.
"What? Did…Edward hire a cleaning lady?" Ted Newgate rubbed his eyes as he saw the clean interior as he walked in. He double-checked to ensure he was in the right house and was greatly confused by the situation. Before he slept, he walked to the kitchen to get a can of beer.
As he approached the kitchen, he saw a plate wrapped in tin foil on the kitchen counter. "Is that for me?" He asked.
His son was already asleep, so he couldn't get an answer. He took the plate and sat on the dinner table before opening it up. There, a still-warm plateful of fried rice was waiting for him. He took a spoonful of a bite and sat quietly as he ate the dish.
-Dunphy's house. Kitchen -
"So, you took him shopping?" Claire interrogated Phil after Alex reported that Phil was spending time with a strange boy to her.
"Yes... You know their family condition. He reached out to me. How could I say no?" Phil defended himself. Although he did something nice, he still felt guilty when Claire asked him. He didn't know why.
"Okay, Phil. Calm down." Claire said reassuringly. "I am not mad. He didn't use your money or buy any dangerous stuff, right? Then…it's fine."
"Really?" Phil asked. "Also. He's a very smart kid. He can do long and complete calculations in his mind."
"No, no. Alex said he is dumb." Claire objected.
"Maybe he just didn't try before this. Cause…you know, his mother ran away and everything. Now that he is more mature, I guess he wants to change his life. I want to be there to support him. He can add the grocery price and also factor in the tax, Claire! He is talented."
"That's great, but are you the perfect person for that?" Claire replied with unconvinced eyes while sipping her cup of tea.
A few meters away by the living room, Alex was reading a book while Haley was texting on her phone. Luke was sitting on the floor to watch tv.
Suddenly, Alex turned to Haley and asked, "When a boy tells you, 'you're even cuter now,' what does that mean?"
Haley replied without looking up from her phone and being interested, "It means he already thought I was cute before this. And even more so now. Also, don't talk to me."
"Oh," Alex exclaimed before she hid her face in the book.
A/N: I have till chapter 10 ready, but I need the editor's help to go through them first. I will upload them all by this Friday.
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