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She shtly sleepy “Okay Lead the way”

I grin and guide her out of the garage and onto the path that leads to the front door

Three steps lead up to the large dark wood front door and we take them slowly We pause outside the door and just stare

I feel overcome by an emotion I can’t describe I think maybe it’s pride—pride in myself that I’ve accomplished this

“This is our home, Thea” I squeeze her hand in mine It feels so small compared to mine

She jumps up and down in place “Open it,” she squeals, like the door is a present we’re about to unwrap I guess, in a way, it is

I dig in ht one to open the door I slip it inside and twist the doorknob

The door swings open with a slight squeak of the hinges

The floors are hardwood and shine like they’ve just been cleaned, which see that’s probably been done with the movers It makes me wonder if Nova didn’t clean the place for us

Thea lets go of ivesoff for the stairs to our right

I tear off up the steps after her Since I’m tall I’m able to skip a few steps so I catch up to her easily I buhs uproariously

“That wasn’t nice!”

“You don’t play fair—so neither do I,” I tell her, reaching the top of the stairs

We fight to get down the hallway to our roo like a bunch of little kids, both of us unable to stop laughing

We push open the doors to our roorab her around the waist before she can pass me