"Guys, come on!"

Ashley jumped out of bed and raced out of the pink room, waking everybody up in the process. "We're gonna be late!" she yelled to the house.

"Yeesh, Ash," Barry grumbled into his pillow. "Five more minutes, please and thanks."

"It's Ashley, not Ash," the girl said in a scary tone.

"It's the same thing, except for one syllable," Heather remarked. "Honestly, Ash, it's not the end of the world if I drop a syllable."

"Whatever. Now can we please get up? The others are waiting," Ashley rolled her eyes.

"Yes, mom," Olive said in mock politeness. "Come now, dearest peers, and let us go downstairs."

"Nice one, Olive!" Barry laughed. "I see you're finally putting my teachings to good use!"

"Guys! Come on! We can't be late on the first day of school! You've had all of summer break to sleep in!" Ashley pleaded.

After much more convincing, the kids finally went down the stairs to the kitchen.

"Took you long enough!" Denise smiled as they trooped in. "Ready for another year of school?"

"Does it look like we're ready?" Barry and Olive said in the exact same monotone, at the exact same time. They both stared at the other, turning slightly red, but the moment went unnoticed by anyone else. Heather was already telling Megan about what she was hoping to learn in math.

Jack set a pie on the table. "We're out of cereal again," he said. "The Blocky-Mart really needs to restock things more often."

"Jack, they're nearly bankrupt!" Megan replied. "They have to rebuild the place before they can sell anything!"

The kids wolfed down the glazed apple pie and grabbed their backpacks. "Bye!" Heather called. "See you in the afternoon!"

"Be good! Have fun!" Device yelled back.

As she walked out the door, Ashley absentmindedly touched the plaque near the door out of habit. The plaque read:

Gorge
Paul
Nick
Robert
Steve

Things had really changed, Heather thought. Despite the rolling-pin shaped dent in the wall that they didn't bother to fix, and the ruins of the Blocky-Mart due to a huge black van, things were looking up. After all, it wasn't a creepy, haunted neighborhood anymore. It was a home.

The end.

~~~~

A/N: IT'S DONE!!! Yay! Thanks to everyone who supported this book, whether it was by voting, commenting, or even just reading. You guys are the best!! Special thank-you's to @Aquawolf_Style and my sister (who doesn't have an account yet but insisted on borrowing my phone and reading every time I published a chapter). Have a great day!