Jakob walked downstairs, and trailed his new sister into the kitchen, where Sierra was eating an apple at the island, and Billy was next to her reading a cookbook.

"How're you getting used to the new house, Kelce?" Jakob asked her, opening the cabinet and looking through the cereal boxes.

"Slowly," Kelce replied evenly, with a pencil clenched in both of her hands. "My room is very... beige," she traded the pencil for a bowl on the table, and looked up at Billy. "May I have toast?"

"Sure, white or brown?" Billy asked, hopping out of his seat.

"All toast is brown," Josh announced, walking past the kitchen "You're thinking of bread,"

Billy chuckled and brought a load of bread over to the toaster (which Leo had assured them he fixed).

"Maybe I can drop by the hardware store and grab some paint for your room," Jakob suggested "What color are you thinking?"

Kelce thought a moment. "White,"

"White?" Billy echoed, handing her the toast.

Jakob watched her switch out the bowl for the toast, and rolled his eyes "Someone needs to get this girl a doll or something,"

"What shade of white?" Sierra asked.

"Does 'blinding' count as a shade?"

"Blinding white..." Jakob shrugged. "It's your room,"

Cassie marched grumpily into the kitchen, and threw herself down on a stool. "Morning," she snapped. Billy came back with his breakfast.

"Hey Cassie, that's my seat," he said politely, gesturing at the stool.

"Do you want it?" Cassie stood up and lifted the stool over her head, and Billy held up his hands in surrender.

"Nope. I'd rather stand in silence than lay in pieces so..."

"What's wrong with you?" Sierra asked, watching her sister set the stool back down.

"My boxing tutor just quit," Cassie growled. "He said something about me accounting for more than half the pain in his life. Now I have to go to the gym," She spat out the last word in disgust.

"What's wrong with the gym?" Billy asked.

"Who's going to fight me at the gym?" She whined. "Maybe I should just go find someone in an alley somewhere, to beat the shit out of..."

"No!" Jakob choked "I'm sure you could find someone who'd let you mutilate them in the gym. Right guys?"

Billy, Sierra, and Kelce all became very interested in their breakfast.

Jakob flipped them off and returned to Cassie. "You should go to the gym. In fact, we should go to the gym,"

"We?" Billy and Sierra echoed.

"Oui," Josh called from the living room.

"Sure," Jakob ignored them. "I'll come along. If it'll keep you out of alley brawls,"

"I don't care," Cassie shrugged.

Billy and Sierra exchanged a look.

"Do you even know how to work out?" Sierra asked.

"I don't need to," Jakob replied "I'll just watch,"

"Why don't I make you a sandwich to eat while you're at it?" Billy said sarcastically, then he turned to Cassie "What do you want for breakfast?"

"I eat assholes for breakfast," she growled.

Jake and Jack froze in the doorway. "Gross,"

Billy picked up the bowl Kelce had left on the counter, set Jakob's hand in it, and offered the bowl to Cassie. "Bon appetit,"

Jakob lifted the bowl and pointed it at Billy's head, stopping short of throwing it, only because of the murderous look on Sierra's face.

"Your girlfriend saved you this time,"

"He's not my boyfriend," Sierra sighed in exasperation. "It's Brian, remember?"

"I thought you were still on Emily," Jakob said.

"I was pretty sure it was Kyle," Cassie added.

"What happened to Nancy?" Billy asked.

"It hasn't been Nancy since last week," Kelce informed him.

"You're all hilarious," Sierra rolled her eyes "Come on Kelce. Let's do your hair," she took her little sister's free hand and led her out.

Taylor, walked in a second later, and spied a large stack of diabetes labeled: French toast, in Billy's cookbook.

"Oooohhh!" She cried, bug eyed "Billy Billy Billy BillyBillyBilly!"

"Yeah!" Billy called back, two feet away.

"Can I have these?" She danced "Please please please!"

"I'm not sure how much more sugar she needs," Cassie muttered to Jakob.

"Sure," Billy nodded. "If you help me make them, you can have it,"

"Let's get out of here," Cassie whispered, and she and Jakob made a swift escape, from the chaos sure to ensue.

***

"I've bench pressed a solid fifteen pounds," Jakob was bragging when he and Cassie walked into the dingey, dark, gym.

Cassie hummed to pretend that she was listening, and glanced around for any sign of what she was supposed to do next.

" 'Ello zere. May I 'elp you?" A sweet female voice, with a heavy french accent, called from off to their right.

Jakob straightened his hair and leaned up against the girl's desk, gazing at her dark hair and eyes. "Oh, I'm sure I can think of something," he answered smoothly.

Cassie rolled her eyes and shoved him out of the way. "Hi there, um... I'm here to check in?"

"Name?" The girl asked politely.

"Jakob," Jakob smiled, offering his hand. Cassie stiff armed him without even looking.

"Cassandra Chamber,"

The girl types the name into the system.

"Where did you get a membership?" Jakob asked.

"My tutor gave it to me when he quit,"

"Damn, what kind of coward was this guy?"

A man, about seven feet tall, built like a brick wall, marched over to the desk. "Dovie, will you grab me a towel?"

"Yes," Dovie grabbed a towel from the storage closet behind her, and handed it to him.

"Hi Mr. Johnson," Cassie waved at him. Jakob's jaw dropped.

Mr. Johnson jumped. Clearly alarmed by Cassie's presence. "C-cassie... What are you doing here?"

"You gave me a gym membership, remember?" She replied.

"Oh, uh," his face contorted as he tried to think fast. "There's a great private room in the back! You should check it out,"

"Eet costs extra," Dovie pointed out.

"That's okay. We didn't bring any money. I'll just use the public area, so I can be around everybody els-"

"I'LL PAY FOR IT!" Mr. Johnson roared, making the three of them jump. With a wild look in his eye, he dug a wad of cash out of his pocket, and threw it on the desk.

Dovie gingerly picked a twenty out of the pile, using a pen, and slid the rest back. Then she handed Cassie a key card.

"Now you run along," Mr. Johnson barely resisted begging. "And I'll stay over here. It's all the way in the back,"

Cassie gave Jakob a see-what-I-mean look, and sauntered off with the card.

"So..." Jakob leaned against the counter and grinned at Dovie. "Do you teach anything?"

"No," Dovie replied. "I just work at zee desk,"

"Are you sure you don't reach beauty?" He insisted, flirtatiously. "Because I'd like to look like you someday,"

Dovie stared at him blankly. And Mr. Johnson slowly applauded his efforts from behind.

"Don't you have somewhere to be?" Jakob snapped at him.

"Probably," Mr. Johnson snorted. "But who in their right minds would miss this? Go on. You're doing great,"