Jillian had just recently woken up and was giving a walk for her golden retriever Luka. The birds already chirped happily all around the park and some other dog walkers and joggers passed Jillian.
Luka had to try and smell everything and his tail wagged constantly. Jillian was also in happy mood since it smelled fresh after the night's rain and she had still a half of the summer vacation left before early mornings and returning in the gruesome boredom of dusty classrooms.
"You having fun, Luka boy? I think you do!" she talked to her dog. She didn't mind if anyone heard since she thought it was OK to talk to animals. Less odd than talking to plants and Jillian knew many who did that too.

Leon sighed. He had woken up not to long ago to an impatient Leila begging to go to the park. Though he had to admire her energy and friendliness, this was far to early in the morning for him.
The night before he had worked till late and only slept a few hours before Leila woke him up. But despite his exhaustion he had to appreciate the fresh morning air. Leon abesentmindedly pulled a cigarette from his ear and put it in his mouth. He wasn't intending to smoke it, it was just something he did when he was thinking. Even if it wasn't he wouldn't have smoked it anyway. Not around Leila.
"Leo! Leo! Look at the pretty doggy! Can we have a doggy?" Leila had the tendency to say that everytime they passed someone with a dog even though she knew that at the moment they couldn't afford a dog. "Don't get too close Leila!" Leon called to her as she ran up to a young girl and her dog. "Hi miss! Can I pet your dog?" Leon sighed as he watched Leila go up to the girl who seemed to be taking to her dog, "Luka".

Jillian knew at the moment when she heard the excited girl's voice, that her dog had caught someone's attention again. Golden retriever was a dream dog of many so Luka had a lot of friends in this park. Jillian poked her dog gently on the leg to get his attention targeted towards the girl coming closer. Luka was a good dog but still wasn't a wise idea to let him get startled by sudden cuddles.
"Hello, there! Of course you can, just let him sniff you a bit first, like you probably know. Luka likes to get all the pets he can", Jillian smiled to the girl and when was sure that Luka had realized the situation, looked around to find girl's parents. They sometimes were terrified about dog owners letting their beasts get close to their darlings.
Jillian only spotted some lad nearby and guessed he must be the kid's care taker by the similiar looks.
"Good morning and don't worry... Luka likes kids, so your daughter is safe!" Jillian informed and smiled to the guy hoping not to get scolded.

A big smile spread across Leila's face as she got closer and held her hand out for Luka to sniff. "Leo! Leo! Look I'm petting him!" Leila yelled looking back at Leon proudly and she gently petted Luka.
Leon felt his face grow warm. 'Daughter? Do I really look that old?' He thought to himself. That was the first time he'd ever heard that on. He knew it was an honest mistake, anyone could easily confuse Leila for his daughter, but he just wasn't used to it.
Leon chuckled and came closer to the girl. "Actually Leila is just my sister. I'm Leon. Leon Davis." He introduced himself and held out his hand.

When the meaning of the words came clear to Jillian, she had a hard time to function for a while. Jillian's face without a doubt turned fire engine red and she stared at the young man without knowing what to say. Being stuck into an awkward silence would have been ever worse though, so she forced words out of her mouth.
"I am... I'm sorry for making such a rushed... I just thought that you looked alike and..." she let the stumbling words hop out of her mouth. Then the first rush of awkwardness started to wear away and Jillian noticed the out held hand.
"Jillian Kenzie and that's Luka. My dog I mean", she said when shaking hands.
Jillian wanted to make something to patch up the awkward moment and looked at the girl petting the dog and then at Leon.
"Hey, mmh, would your sister like to walk Luka? He doesn't pull at all and she seems to like my dog, right? I mean, of course only if you're also going towards the ice cream stand", Jillian suggested.

The girl turned a dark red and for a moment she didn't seem to know what to do with her self. Leon chuckled softly to himself. He hadn't meant to fluster her and it was a common mistake. Besides like she said they did look quite alike.
"Nice to meet you Jillian." Leon said, offering her a genuinely kind smile, as she shook his hand and introduced herself. He then watched Leila's face brighten at Jillian's offer to let her walk the dog. "Hm... I'm not too sure Jillian. I don't think Leila likes ice cream too much besides she's probably too tired to walk Luka here." He said with a playful smile. Leon then looked at Jillian and winked. "Maybe some other time."
"No! I'm not tired! I do like ice cream! Leo...!" Leila then desperately looked at Jillian. "Don't listen to him! He's a meanie! Please, please, please can I walk 'im? I can keep up. I promise!" She begged making Leon chuckle again. "Relax I was kidding. We weren't planning on heading that way but it doesn't sound like a bad idea. That's what we'll do." He decided still laughing softly to himself.

Jillian couldn't help but laugh to how Leo tricked her sister. To be honest, Jillian added in her mind, I got tricked too and would have been the next to beg him not to leave if he had really ment it. Jillian was charmed by the little girl already and she was curious about knowing who these people actually were.
Jillian squatted in front of Leila and offered the baby blue leash with paw print decorations on it to the girl.
"You have to take the leash on your left hand, since Luka has been taught to walk on that side", she explained to the girl and slipped the leash on her hand. "When we start walking, you have to only say 'come' to Luka and he'll follow you. If he stops sniffing something, you don't need to stop or pull or anything. He'll catch up with you easily and the leash is long enough for him not to accidentally pull your hand", Jillian explained in detail. She didn't want to make Leila worried about was she doing right.
"So, mmh, basically just tell him that we're going and then walk with us", Jillian smiled. Then he stood up and looked at Leon. "Shall we go? I wouldn't mind having some pear ice cream today!"
"Mmh, have you moved in here recently?" the question had just escaped from her mouth but it was something she would ask sooner or later anyhow.

Leon watched as Leila took the leash from the girl with the upmost seriousness. It wasn't often that he saw Leila so serious and concentrated but it also wasn't often that Leila got to walk a dog.
"I've never had pear ice cream before." Leon said as Jillian stood. He thought for a moment before starting to walk. "I've always liked french vanilla." He continued almost like he was thinking outloud.
"Leo! I want strawberry ice cream! Kay?"Leila interjected while following behind them.
Leon opened his mouth to tell her he knew exactly what she wanted when Jillian suddenly asked if they'd recently moved here. He slowed slightly and thought about it.
"We've been here a couple of months. Maybe two and a half...?" Leon half answered Jillian, half asked himself outloud. "How long have you been here?" He didn't usually ask those kinds of things but now they were on the subject he began to wonder why he had never seen the girl and her dog around before.

It was almost like someone telling a kid that Santa doesn't exist when Leon admitted never tasting pear ice cream, but Jillian decided not to comment it further. "I like all ice cream really", Jillian just replied smiling.
As they began to walk Jillian took couple of looks towards Leila to make sure she wasn't too worried about the dog walking responsibility. The girl seemed to take her job seriously but also looked happy and Luka was alright with the arrangement, so Jillian could really relax.
"Already so long? I spend a lot of time outside the house but can't remember seeing either of you ever", Jillian was surprised. She usually knew about new families, either by meeting their kids by herself on the hobbies or hearing about them from her mother.
"Actually I've lived in New Het as long as I can remember. We moved in here when I was a baby. The old place in Heather River didn't have enough space for us", Jillian explained and continued with trying to find a reason for never meeting before: "Maybe... We just have different kind of daily schedules or something."
"Why did you move in New Het, if it's not rude to ask?"

Leon nodded slowly as Jillian talked, every once and awhile glancing at Leila to make sure she hadn't run off. Despite knowing she usually didn't do that sort of thing he was very protective of her.
"It probably is because of different schedules. I'm not usually out and about so early."Leon answered with a thoughtful smile. Most of the times he was up early was to take Leila to school and he wouldn't go till around noon to help out. It wasn't like they ever went out as a family either. Their mother would always rather sit in the garden if she had to get out of the house.
"No, not at all. We moved here because our mom got sick and we all decided that the fresh air here would be better than being in some apartment in the city." Leon half hoped Jillian wouldn't say she was sorry or anything like that for their mother being sick. But if she did he wouldn't dwell on it too much, afterall it was just something people did.

Jillian smiled to Leon mentioning the early time and pointed at Luka as an explanation for her early beginning day. "He lets me sleep as long as I want to, but oh boy, he knows immediately to start pestering me if I happen to wake up and try to fall back asleep without taking him out..."
Jillian nodded to Leon's explanation about why they moved in New Het. Usually people came in here when they got kids or they went on a pension and wanted own house and own back yard for grand children to play in without too many nosy neighbours aswell.
"I can't say anything else than that I really like the life pace in here and we really do have fresh air with a bit of nature in here to mend anything", Jillian smiled a little. "Environment you like to be in must mean a lot for people and no wonder either."
Then she looked forward feeling a bit embarassed of the cheesy sounding things she said and saw the corner of the ice cream stand.
"Hey, Leila... When we get to the stand there is one more thing you can try with Luka if you want to. When we're waiting for the ice cream, you can ask Luka to sit. I think he'd do it for you since he seems to like you", Jillian nodded to Leila guessing that it would mean a lot for the girl if she got some sort of proof that the dog liked her.

Leon chuckled softly. "I wish Leila would let me sleep as long as I want," He said, looking at Leila teasingly. Fortunately the girl was far too concentrated on walking Luka to pay any attention to what he had said.
Leon nodded. Since they had moved there he had really seen the difference between the to places. Here he felt more at ease, especially in letting Leila do things like going to the park with friends she made in school. On top of that ever since they had moved their mother seemed far more lively, even if the farthest she went was the backyard.
"Yeah," Leon answered with a smile, "Our mom actually goes outside sometimes here. You know, not just when she has to go to the doctor."
Leila's eyes brightened and a wide smile spread across her face. "Really? You think Luka likes me?" She asked excitedly. It wasn't very often she got to walk people's dogs and it was the first time anyone had ever told her their dog probably likes her.
Leon smiled at Jillian and Leila. This was the happiest he had seen his sister since their mother got sick and he was glad to see her smiling again. Of course, it wasn't like he didn't do things to make her happy, like volunteering in her class and taking her out places, but this was a different kind of distraction for her. It was the kind that didn't remind her that Leon also did those things because their mother couldn't.

((Sorry it took so long. I forgot I didn't reply. D=))

It was impossible not to remember how they were with her younger sister towards Juliet when they were younger. Every morning after early breakfast, served by their half asleep mother, they watched the cartoons patiently only for couple of shows until they started to miss their still sleeping elder sister. First step was to go in her room and ask was she awake or not. Then they climbed on her bed repeating "Wake up, Juliet" with small voice as if they were worried if it really would happen. In the end they started bluntly pulling the blanket off from their poor sister and got tossed with stuffed animals and pillows followed with grunting of Juliet. It was not a big deal since they knew by that point their sister wouldn't go back to sleep.
Jillian wondered if Leila did any similiar things in the morning to wake up his brother. She seemed like an angel like girl to Jillian and probably was unable to execute such annoying acts as she had done as a kid.
"I'm glad to hear that moving in here has worked as hoped", Jillian smiled a bit and couldn't help but wonder what was the illness of Leon and Leila's mother.
"Yeah, Leila. Sometimes other people have also walked him, but Luka kept looking after me with them. Now he couldn't care the less about where I am and keeps making sure you haven't disappeared. I don't know if I should be a bit jeallous", Jillian laughed.
"Hey, look! There's no line to get ice cream. We'll have it in no time, but you can still try the trick I mentioned", Jillian winked to Leila while searching for coins in her pocket.

Leon smiled. "Yeah..." He said softly. Even though their mother seemed more lively her bad moments seemed to get worse and worse. But he knew it was because she refused to stay in the hospital. He looked at Leila and sighed softly. The reason was because she was too worried about how Leila would feel about it and didn't want the girl to be scared.
"Wow! I can't believe Luka really likes me!" Leila smiled proudly. "Leo! Leo! Guess what? Luka likes me!" She exclaimed to her older brother. Her face had now completely brightened. She was excited and couldn't wait to tell Luka to sit once they got their ice cream.
Leon noticed Jillian searching through her pocket and pulled out his own wallet. "Don't worry about it, I've got this," He said approaching the ice cream stand. "You wanted pear right?" He asked smiling kindly at Jillian.

"I'm so sorry... And thanks... Yeah, pear would work", Jillian said and felt really awkward. She had been sure there was some money in her pocket from the last trip to a grocery store. They probably had fallen off somewhere in her room when she had changed the clothes last night before going to sleep.
While he was not able to catch the stare, Jillian gave another good look for the guy. Leon probably was a guy most girls would've taken as their own at any time. Slim yet manly body structure and very nice face, nice hair cut too. He was nice and also seemed like a person who had got adult earlier than others. Having ill mother and a little sister just learning the rules of life must have pressed on him.
Then Jillian stopped herself from the thoughts she had. I know nothing about him yet and he doesn't need me to feel sorry for him, it doesn't help with anything.

Leon smiled kindly. "Don't worry about it," He answered. He gave Jillian a kind smile before turning to the ice cream vendor. Even if Jillian had the money to pay for her own cone he wouldn't have let her pay for her own cone. It was the least he could do for her and Luka cheering Leila up.
"Sit Luka," Leila said firmly, before giggling and petting the dog. "I want strawberry okay?" She called out to her brother. He chuckled softly and continued to order. Excitedly Leila peered up at Jillian, "Jillian! Jillian! Look he sat!" The young girl hardly noticed that Jillian was staring at her brother, as she was far too excited for both Luka sitting for her and the ice cream.
Leo payed for the ice cream and held out a cone towards Jillian. "Here you go. Pear ice cream," He said. He then handed Leila her cone which she didn't hesitate to take. "Does Luka like ice cream?" Leila asked, taking a lick from her cone. She had seen some classmates from school feeding their dogs human food and wondered if dogs liked ice cream too.

Jillian smiled to Leila a bit late and hoped she wouldn't feel sad about it.
"You told him to sit exactly the right way too, Leila", she praised the girl. "See, he's all happy from being ordered around! Wagging tail and everything" Jillian shaked his head with a fake sigh.
"Thank you", Jillian said again and took the ice cream smiling. The question Leila asked made her laugh a bit.
"He does actually, but your cone is safe since he doesn't take food without promise", Jillian explained.
"I don't suggest you to give your ice cream to him though. Too much ice cream probably makes his tummy hurt since dogs aren't meant to eat milk products", Jillian pondered.
Jillian looked at Leon again and felt need to come up with something to say.
"So, any special plans for today? I'm probably just going to stay at home and get some Xbox played."

Chloe got off the bus slightly confused about where she was, and held her bags in her hands by the very tips of her fingers. She has traveled a long time on that bus and went by many strange people. Her feet weren't too much in pain, but her nerves were on end from everyone around her touching her. Most of it wasn't even intentional touching, just a graze of an arm and she freaked out, her want to punch someone on the bus was at full capacity. She just hoped it was worth it to get away from her parents.

Just for a moment she put her bags down on the pavement and took a deep and long breath. Looking up at the sky she thought about how far away from them she really was, a good thousand or three miles seemed about right. She smiled picked up her bags with a new found determination and walked to her little corner of the town.

Once she got to the building she would from now forward call her home she smirked up at its shambled ledges and grayed out bricks, with windows peeking out that had bars on some of them and fire-scapes off of others. She walked in and put her bags down in what seemed at the moment to be an ideal living area. She then headed outside to explore the town.

She slowly left her building and kept her handy dandy hand sanitizer close by as she roamed the streets of the town. Chloe purveyed the locals and was wondering when she would be considered one of them, she shrugged and continued on her walk. Passing by many people of all different shapes and sizes and wondered where she should end up.

Leila smiled proudly. "Leo! I want a dog, Leo!" She called to her brother. She was already planning on telling their mom all about Luka when they got home. Leo would tell their mom that she was great with the dog then maybe their mom would finally let her have one.
Leon smiled. "Don't worry about it," He answered before taking a lick of his own ice cream. He was curious as to how pear ice cream would taste and had gotten it for himself as well. "Hmm..." Leon sighed softly. The pear ice cream was... interesting but he didn't dislike it.
For a second Leila's face brightened. She really wanted to feed Luka something but her expression fell when Jillian said that the ice cream would hurt Luka's tummy. "But, what happens if Luka wants to eat ice cream some day? Or he wants to drink chocolate milk?" She asked looking at Jillian seriously. She couldn't imagine not being able to drink chocolate milk or eat ice cream. They were just too yummy.
At Leila's question Leon would chuckle softly. "Don't worry kiddo. What are you planning? To take Luka to an ice cream bar or somethin'? He ruffled her hair playfully, causing the girl to pout, and turned his attention to Jillian. "No special plans yet. But I don't think we'll be staying in today. It's too nice out here," He smiled and took another lick from his cone, "Don't you think?"

Jillian had to smile to the worries of Leila. Of course a kid would think dogs like such great things, since they tasted so good for her. After Leon's playful comment to the worries Jillian scratched her head like she thought very hard.
"I think that... It would be like for you on Halloween. I bet you've eaten way too much candy some times even when you know you shouldn't. Luka would eat and then regret, maybe? Chocolate milk really isn't good though, since chocolate can be dangerous for dogs", she pondered and ended with a sad expression. Then she smiled again to lighten up the mood. "Luka has treats humans can't eat. He really loves dried pig ears! Doesn't it sound yummy, Leila?"
Jillian nodded to Leon's comments about the weather. She also had plans of spending time outside. "I think I'm going to skate or rollerblade myself. We have a decent skate park, actually", she explained and took a big bite from her ice cream.

Katya smiled as she walked through the town, waving at people that she knew, which was mostly everyone. Not all of them seemed to like her-- she got a lot of odd or dirty looks-- but that didn't bother her.

It was nice out, and a lot of people were out and about-- some with pets, some with their children... but some were alone. She noticed one of those people, a blond girl who seemed to look about her with caution. Katya had never seen her before, and for some reason she struck her as odd, like she was from somewhere else.

Well, she'd never find out if she didn't talk to her. Pretending to stumble, she bumped into the other girl, feigning surprise.

"Oh, sorry!" she said, before rushing into a greeting, "Hi! Uh, I'm Kat! Are you new here? You look new, that's why I was asking, heh..." she said quickly, reaching out her hand for the other girl to shake and smiling cheerfully.

"Are we there yet?" the girl growled at her father as they pulled into the little town in their moving van. They had been in the car since yesterday morning and they had only stopped for the bathroom and some snacks.

The man told her that they were almost there and then he grinned. What's he all excited about? she girl thought, feeling upset and bothered. She hadn't had her coffee yet, seeing as how her father had drank it while she was sleeping last night.

They pulled into the driveway of a good looking house. She quickly realized that she probably wouldn't mind this too much. The only thing that really bothered her was that she was in a small town. Not much going on.

She sighed and kicked the door open, jumping out quickly. She looked around, a hand over her eyes to block the sun. They lived right next to a park, where she could see a bunch of teenagers gathered around something.

Chloe stumbled slightly as the girl bumped into her. "It's okay." She tilted her head and looked at the girl confused, but responded in the way she thought appropriate. "Hi Kat, I'm Chloe." She shook Kat's hand briefly. "What do you think of this place? I'm new here and I'm not quite sure what to think." She gave a short nervous chuckle.

While speaking with this girl her eyes continued to wander and see what other people were doing. She didn't want to be caught off guard by anyone, again.