Chapter Text
Charlotte couldn't see very much from her bedroom window. The way her house sat in conjunction with the other mostly obscured her view of the street from her window. So she threw on some pants and headed down to the living room. She thought, "Maybe I'll get to see the new neighbors. Maybe they'll have kids to babysit! Maybe they have a cute son!"
She sat on the couch in front of the bay window. She could see the activity very clearly now. She could see the truck parked in front of the house. The trailer's side doors were open, and a metal ramp was attached. The open door partially obscured the United Van Lines logo on the side of the trailer.
A pickup was parked in the driveway that Charlotte was pretty sure hadn't been there when she went to bed last night. She assumed it was the new residents, because the house was clearly open for the movers.
She counted four men, all wearing the same work uniforms. They moved quickly between the truck and the house. It was a typical June morning in Brownsville, TX. It was almost 80 degrees at only 8 am. Charlotte saw the impact of the hard work and the rising heat already beginning to show on the men's shirts.
The moving men worked like ants, exiting the truck with boxes and furniture, disappearing into the house, then reemerging with furniture pads and the remnants of packing material to carry back into the truck. Charlotte was pretty impressed by the efficiency and practiced teamwork that she witnessed. These men had obviously worked together for a while.
Charlotte never really knew the older couple that used to live in that house, but she's kind of glad they're gone. Her family tried to be good neighbors. But they were not interested in her or her family. They were polite and civil to Charlotte and her parents. But little more than that. Charlotte always assumed they just didn't like black people. But she didn't really know that for sure. It was just a suspicion, based on the way that they acted.
Another car pulled into the driveway. Charlotte watched as two people exited. It looked like maybe a mother and daughter. Charlotte thought, "Well, shit. No babies to babysit." Not that she really cared about babysitting. But she did notice that one of the two people exiting the car was a girl about her age. She thought, "Ok! Friend material! Even better!" The girl and the woman, who, by their looks, were clearly the girl's mother, were both white - very white!
The girl came over to her mother's side of the car. Charlotte studied her. She was lithe, almost skinny. She looked like she was maybe an inch or so shorter than Charlotte. Her skin was a beautiful pale porcelain color. She had pale grey eyes and long flowing chestnut hair pulled back behind her ears. Charlotte thought the girl was dressed very modestly. She thought, "Well, shit! I bet she's a Christian! That sucks. I bet she'd be really cute if she dressed differently!"
The mother held her hands out to the girl, and the girl took them. Then she looked downward, as if she was bowing her head. Charlotte thought, "Well, that proves it! She's a Christian!" But as she watched, the girl's eyes were drawn upward, toward the window where Charlotte sat. She saw Charlotte sitting there and smiled at Charlotte, while her mother finished praying. Charlotte smiled back and gave her a little wave. She thought, "There's hope!"
Charlotte walked to the kitchen to put her empty bowl and spoon in the dishwasher. She saw that the dishes in it were clean, so she took a couple of minutes to put them away before depositing her bowl.
That's just the kind of girl Charlotte is. She's more mature than most girls her age. Of course, she can be a silly teenager when it suits her. But she likes helping around the house. She knows her parents both work hard to provide for her. She likes feeling like she's doing her part.
It was the last Monday of May, and school had just gotten out for Summer break. So, Charlotte had the day to herself. She intended to start her day in the pool. She loved to swim in the morning, before the sun was sweltering. She loved the feel of the cooler morning breeze on her skin as she just floated in the pool.
She went upstairs to her room to put on her swimsuit. She grabbed her two-piece and headed to her en suite bathroom. She stripped off her clothes. Before she put her suit on, she looked at her hair. It was braided in tight, long braids that hung to her shoulders. She didn't have any beads or things in her hair. That wasn't her style. But she really likes her braids. Even though they're definitely a pain. Every month, she has to detangle her braids and then sit in a stylist's chair for 4 hours getting her hair re-braided. She looked in the mirror and thought, "But, damn, they look good!"
She studied her body while she stood there, too. She thought she had a pretty amazing body! Her firm, round breasts filled a B cup. And she was close to needing new bras! She had smallish areolas and nipples. And the skin of her breasts lightened slightly as it approached her areola. She thought it made her tits look like they were glowing on her chest!
She looked at the shape of her waist and hips. She's not skinny at all. She's perfectly proportioned, with a little bit of girl fat where girl fat should be. Her abdomen rose ever so slightly to form a long oval under her breasts, and softened just above her hips. Her hips flattened toward her mound, highlighting it. Her pubic synthesis was slightly pronounced, which made her mound sit high. And she had long, thick labia. It was the kind of pussy that made her stick out at the beach. Boys couldn't keep their eyes off her mound. And that suited her just fine!
But, while she doesn't mind a little attention, she's not a flashy, trashy girl. The two-piece suit she put on was actually a bit more modest than most. It had thick sides that exposed no side-boob. And while the bottoms dipped in the front to just above her mound, they only exposed the bottom portion of her cheeks in the back.
Charlotte headed out to the pool and climbed onto her favorite pool float. It was hard foam on the sides where her arms rested. It had a thin foam cushion that ran between the armrests, and a back that allowed her to sit reclined, but not flat, like a blow-up float. It also had a rainbow colored and shaped awning that curved from side to side. It protected her face while her feet and legs dangled in the water. It was meant for just one person. But it was pretty bulky. It could easily fit a friend, if she had one to swim with.
She thought about the new girl next door as she floated. She wondered if they'd be friends. She wondered if she would want to float with her in her pool. She thought, "She looked kind of skinny! I bet she'd fit just fine!"
After floating for a while, Charlotte decided to head inside. She exited the pool and headed into the house. Entering the house from the back yard took you into a kind of all-season room that the Kaines used as a wet room. The floor was tile, and there was a rack for hanging swimsuits. There was also a stand by the door with a stack of clean, dry towels. The Kaines were not nudists, or anything. But Charlotte was very accustomed to them seeing her naked. It didn't phase her in the least. It was just how she was raised. And she'd seen both her parents naked plenty of times! So, Charlotte stood in the 'wet room' and stripped out of her suit. She hung it up and grabbed a towel. She wrapped it around herself, more to catch the dripping water than for any modesty reasons, and headed into the house.
Before going upstairs, she checked on the progress next door. She sat on the couch in just her towel and looked out the window. She saw the moving men, continuing their work. The pace had slowed. It looked as though they were focusing on just bigger furniture now. She could see them exiting the truck, with their bulging muscles as they gripped the lifting straps.
As she watched, she let her towel unwrap a little, exposing her. She was perfectly covered by the back of the couch. So nobody could see her body. But while she watched the men, her fingertips and nails began to caress her tummy and breasts. When her hand started to wander toward her middle, she decided to take her little party upstairs to her room.
If Charlotte were honest, she wasn't all that interested in the men she saw. It's not that she wasn't interested in boys. She just wasn't attracted to those particular men. But that didn't stop her from using them as an excuse to get aroused! Charlotte liked the feeling of being aroused. She got aroused by something every day. And she satisfied that arousal pretty much every day. She had been doing so since she was a kid, barely starting puberty.
As she lay on the bed, her mind began to shift from the men next door to her own body. She spread her knees and cupped her pussy, feeling the fullness of her labia. She brought two fingers to the top of her hood and traced down both sides. She has a long hood, with a not-so-small clit at the end. She loved to feel her fingers slide up and down the sides of her hood, between her labia, and rub her clit on each pass. That's what she was doing now. And within just a couple of minutes, she felt the spark of her climax ignite. Within another minute, she had brought herself to orgasm, moaning quietly as she arrived.
She lay there for a couple of minutes, enjoying her post-orgasm recovery, then took a shower to wash the chlorine off her skin. This was pretty much how she envisioned spending her entire summer: swimming in the morning, rubbing one out afterwards, and then reading or watching videos.
Ella Ostrow stood in her new room, looking around. She liked the shape of it. She had an en suite bathroom! That's new! This house was much bigger than their house in Huntsville. And newer! She took a second to be thankful for all this. She was really proud of her Mom and Dad. They had worked so hard to provide all this. She gave a quick prayer of thanks as she looked around.
She thought about where she wanted her bed and dresser. This was such a big room! She didn't really know what to do with all the space! Her room was in the back corner of the second floor. The windows were a little awkward. There were two. One of the windows was on the wall that looked out over their new backyard. The other faced the neighbor's house. It wasn't centered. It was pushed toward the corner of the wall closest to her backyard. She thought that it looked kind of wonky. Looking out that window, she could see into a bedroom of the house next door.
She could also see part of a swimming pool in their new neighbors' backyard. Her house didn't have a pool. She wondered if she and the girl she saw in the window earlier would be friends. Maybe she'd invite her to go swimming!
She looked into the bedroom across from her. Looking in felt like an intrusion. She felt a little guilty doing it. Then, as she thought about it, she felt a little vulnerable. If she could see in that bedroom, then they could probably see into hers! She pulled the blind down to cover the window. She thought, "I think we'll just leave that closed. Let light in through the other window!"
That's just the kind of girl Ella is. She's soft and feminine. A girly girl. She loves pretty things, horses, America, and Jesus. Just like that song by Tom Petty. But unlike the song, she doesn't have a boyfriend. She'll be 15 in just 3 months, and has never had a boyfriend. She's never wanted one, either! She's happy waiting until she's out of school before even thinking about boys. She took the pledge when she started high school and proudly wears her promise ring.
But... If she's honest... She does think about boys now and then. She just doesn't let the thoughts grow to consume her. She doesn't give in to them. She's a good Christian girl, chaste and pure. She would never allow those kinds of thoughts to affect her and her future. Someday, when she's done with school, she'll find the right boy and start a family. But not now. Not yet.
She decided on the layout for her room. She took a roll of wrapping tape and cut squares to put on the floor, outlining where she wanted her bed. She centered it on the wall facing the neighbors. Between the corner and the window with the blinds drawn. She did the same for her desk. She put it opposite her bed, centered between the door to her en suite and the door to her closet. She looked at her walk-in closet. Again, it wasn't huge, but it was all hers! It had plenty of shelves for all her clothes. With this much space, she decided she didn't really need a dresser in her room. She'd have the movers leave that in the garage. She thought it would be nice to have some kind of seat under the window, so she could sit there and look out. She grabbed some paper and a pen to take some notes. The first entry was, "#1: Something for under the window."
She thought about wall treatments. She decided she wanted pastels. Not pink like her last house. That's a little girl's color. She wanted more mature colors. But she really does like springtime pastel and flowery types of colors! She thought maybe a light green would be nice. And... Maybe just a hint of pink. She giggled as she thought about that.
She walked into her new bathroom. It wasn't super big. But it was pretty nice for just her! There was a decent-sized sink and vanity. There was a curbless walk-in shower. It didn't even have a door or anything! And there was a separate little room for the potty, too! She looked in the potty room and saw little shelves. She thought that would be perfect for extra rolls of tissue paper, as well as her feminine supplies.
She thought a couple of thin vases with fake flowers would look really pretty on the vanity. The bathroom walls were a neutral color. So she could get shower mats and towels that blended with the bedroom, too.
There was no carpet on the upstairs. It was all hardwood floors. So, she needed one or two rugs for her room. She made a note about that also. She'd go on Wayfair later and start looking at ideas for everything.
She went downstairs and watched the movers. Her mom and dad were already opening boxes. She asked, "Daddy, what can I do to help?" Nick and Danica Ostrow looked at each other. He asked, "Kitchen?" Danica nodded. Nick looked at Ella and said, "Start unloading boxes in the kitchen. Maybe focus on what we'll need first. Like glasses for drinking."
Ella nodded and got to work. She began opening boxes and prioritizing what to unpack. She found the glassware and started unwrapping glasses. She didn't know where her mom wanted things yet, so she just put them in the dishwasher for now. She figured her mom would want to wash them, anyway.
She found the everyday dishes and unwrapped them as well. She loaded most of them in the dishwasher and put the rest on the counter, organized so that her mom could easily decide where to put them. She found the flatware and cookware, like knives, spatulas, and stuff. She loaded what she thought was the important stuff into the dishwasher and put the rest close to the stove.
She ignored the boxes of small appliances for now. But she managed to find the kitchen linens: towels, rags, placemats, trivets, and things like that. She unpacked all of that.
As she broke down the boxes, she asked her mom where the cleaning supplies were. Her dad said, "Back of my truck." She ran out to his pickup truck and found a couple of mop buckets full of cleaning supplies. One had the carton of dishwasher pods. She carried everything into the house and started the dishwasher.
She decided she was at a stopping point without some help from her mom. She found a roll of packing tape and a Sharpie. She began labeling cabinets and drawers with what she thought were the right places for dishes, glasses, and everything. When she was done, she called, "Mom! Do you have a minute?"
Danica came in and immediately saw what Ella had done with the labels. She didn't even look at what Ella had decided. She just hugged Ella and said, "You're brilliant. Those are perfect!" Ella smiled and nodded. Then she got to work loading the shelves and drawers.
There was a very big pantry just behind the kitchen. She dragged the boxes of appliances in there and started unloading them closer to the back of the pantry. She found boxes of dry goods and spices and began unloading them and arranging them on the shelves.
When she was done, she sat in the pantry and looked at the shelves. She was pleased with her work. Her dad came in and looked. He rubbed his fingers on the top of her head and said, "This looks amazing, sweetie!" She said, "The dishes in the dishwasher will be done soon. I'll wash some glasses in the sink for drinks until then." Nick said, "I think there's still ice left in the cooler in the truck, if you want to grab that." Ella nodded and went to the truck to fetch the ice and beverages. It was too heavy for her, so she dragged it to the front door.
One of the moving men saw her struggling with it. So, he stopped his partner and came to help. He was a younger man. Barely a man at all. He was probably still in high school. He picked up the cooler with ease and asked, "Where would you like it?" He had a thick Mexican accent.
Ella noticed the gleam in his eye as he waited for her to reply. He was definitely showing interest in her. She blushed and quickly looked away as she said, "Oh! Here! Follow me, please!" She led him into the kitchen. Then, without making eye contact, she said, "Thank you so much!" The boy got the hint. He wasn't going to score with this girl. But, at the same time, he thought she had shown just a hint of interest. He decided that she's not racist or anything. She's just a sweet, shy young girl. "Besides," he thought to himself, "she's too young for me anyway. But she sure is pretty!"
The truck was emptied, and the movers left. Nick gave them a sizable tip to split amongst themselves. The Ostrows spent the next several hours emptying boxes and arranging enough furniture to get started with living in their new home.
Danica said, "I think we're all going to be hungry soon, and I don't really feel like cooking. Let's order pizza! We need to start trying the local shops anyway! " Nick got on his phone and got some suggestions from some of the folks he knows from the Artemis project. They called and ordered. It was a pretty slow Sunday, so the pizza arrived in about 45 minutes.
Ella got paper napkins and plates for the table. Danica poured drinks, and they all sat down together for the first time in their new home. Nick held out his hands, signalling that he wanted to give thanks. Everyone held hands as he gave thanks for their new home, the great workers, the pizza, and an all-around excellent day!
Danica said, "So, Ella, what do you think?" Ella's eyes lit up, she said, enthusiastically, "Mom! It's so much better than the Zillow pictures! My room is amazing! And I have my own potty room!"
She took a bite of her pizza and then said, "I think there's a girl my age next door. I saw her in her window when we first got here. They have a pool, too! Maybe we can be friends!" Nick was happy to hear that. Ella didn't have many friends back in Huntsville. And she wasn't really bothered about the move, either. So, it was pretty clear to him that she didn't feel like she was leaving anyone important behind.
He said, "Well, if they have a pool, then maybe we all need to make friends with them!" They all laughed as they enjoyed their pizza in their new home.
After dinner, Ella went up to her room for the night. She had a lot to unpack and start figuring out. Her bed was already set up by the workers. They had placed it exactly where she had marked. They even pulled up the tape for her when they were done. Her desk was where it belonged, also. But unfortunately, the dresser she really didn't want made its way up to her room, instead of getting left in the garage. She thought, "Oh, well! I guess I can always use another counter for stuff!"
She opened the box with her electronics and was pleased to see that everything arrived intact. Her dad had texted her the wireless password, so she got her laptop set up and connected. She took out her wireless speakers from the box next and set them up on her desk. Then she grabbed her phone and asked Siri to play Ocie Elliot. A couple of seconds later, music was playing, and she was ready to get back to work.
The first thing she did was open the box of bed linens. She emptied it on the floor and pulled out her sheets and blankets to make her bed. She opened up all the boxes of pillows next. Ella liked pillows. She was never much into stuffed animals. But she really loved pillows. On her bed, on the floor, everywhere!. She loved to lie on them while she studied and just listen to music. One was much more likely to find Ella relaxing on the floor of her room, on a big pile of pillows, than on her bed!
But this was no time for lounging. She had several more boxes to empty, and then she'd be done. She wanted to finish her room tonight and get it done. Then she'd have her sanctuary back.
She emptied the remaining boxes of clothes and put them in her closet. Then she opened the box of wall art and posters. She started hanging things over her bed and desk. She made quick work of all that, and by 9 pm, she was done. She was also exhausted. She decided it was time for bed. She went downstairs and gave her parents hugs, then went back up to her room.
She decided to take a quick shower to wash the moving day off her before climbing into her clean bed linens. She went to her closet, grabbed clean undies and a sleep shirt, and then went to the bathroom. She stripped her shirt and pants off when she realized she had forgotten to unpack the towels. She was far too modest to even consider running downstairs in just her underwear. Even the thought of that made her blush! So she put her clothes back on and went downstairs to see if her Mom had any towels open yet. She did. Ella grabbed one and ran back upstairs.
Now, ready to shower, she took her clothes back off. She turned on the water and waited for it to get warm. While she waited, she brushed her teeth.
She looked at herself in the mirror while she brushed her teeth. She thought she looked like the spitting image of her mother when she was her age. And that made her happy. She thinks her mom is super pretty. She is tall and willowy. Ella didn't see a willowy girl in the mirror. She saw a skinny girl with tiny breasts. She barely had a figure. Her mother said that's exactly how she looked when she was her age. Her mother also said she didn't think Ella was skinny at all. She was just 'lithe'. Ella was pretty sure that was just another word for skinny.
She put down her electric toothbrush and rinsed the toothpaste from her mouth. Then she looked at herself in the mirror again. She squeezed her small A-cup breasts. Truth be told, they were only slightly smaller than her mother's. So, she was pretty sure what she had was all she was ever going to have. She shrugged while she squeezed them. It felt nice caressing and squeezing them. She closed her eyes as a finger circled each hard little nipple. She shivered from the feeling, which made her stop. She jumped into the shower, forgetting about her body.