They are gone. Taken away by men in navy blue business suits. Probably never to be seen ever again. I have so many questions. But no one has the answers. *********************** Monday, 29th August 2016 Knock. Knock. Knock. “I’ll answer it!” I called out.

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First name, first letter of surname
Paloma L
Age
12
They are gone. Taken away by men in navy blue business suits. Probably never to be seen ever again. I have so many questions. But no one has the answers.

***********************
Monday, 29th August 2016

Knock. Knock. Knock.

“I’ll answer it!” I called out. I got up from my bed where I was texting my friends. They were all having a fun time to together in Hawaii while I was stuck at home with my Dad who only cares about one thing: That I don’t ever leave his sight. Ever.

When I opened the door I was surprised that it wasn’t Mr and Mrs Smith from unit 4 delivering dinner. You see, Dad can’t cook. And even if he could he’s on his computer 24/7 trying to earn enough money to pay the rent for this apartment.

Anyway, the person who was at door was the landlady, Maria. Who owned this apartment. She’s short, about a foot smaller than me. She looks like a principle, a strict one, with pointy glasses and everything. But she’s really kind.

“Hi Maria, is everything alright. We weren’t expecting you to come today.” I said calmly. But that was not how I felt, she might have come to kick us out. I took a deep breath and crossed my fingers.

Maria smiled and looked me up and down. “Kara! It’s so good to see you again. You’ve grown so much. Is your father home?”

I nodded, “Yes, he is. But he’s busy right now. Does he need to be here?”

Maria smiled again and shook her head, “No, love, he doesn’t need to be here. But could you please tell him later. It’s important for everyone to be informed.”

I nodded to let her know that she could continue speaking. I am not a patient person, so I really needed to know if we had to pack our bags and leave. And I needed to know soon.

“Well, on Friday, some new people will be moving in to unit 5, right above you. They are bringing a pet with them. I thought you should know.”

I let out a sigh. We weren’t being kicked out!

“Well, anyway. That’s all I came for. So I better be going. Have a good day.”

I waved Maria goodbye and watched as she walked down the stairs.

******

Dinner was delivered at 5:00. Mrs Smith apologised multiple times about how she forgot to make dessert. But I wasn’t hungry, so I didn’t mind. We got out the plates and put all the delicious food Mrs Smith had made for us on them. Then we ate.

“So who came to the door earlier today?” Dad asked.

I finished chewing my asparagus then said, “It was Maria. She came to say that new neighbours are moving in on Friday. In unit 5.”

Dad nodded. And then we both ate the rest of our food in silence.

******
Friday, 2nd September 2016

It was Friday. The day of the neighbours’ arrival. I was so excited. I had spent the past 4 days making a WELCOME basket. It was full of snacks and fun stuff, like colouring books for adults and Crayola markers to colour it in. I even included Dad’s phone number so they could call us if they needed anything.

I was soooo excited.

******
It was 2:00pm and I was waiting at the window for the neighbours. Then I saw that strangest thing. Three children, and a donkey walking down the street. Where were their parents? And where did they get the donkey from.

Then something even stranger happened, they walked into the apartment block. I ran to the door and listened to their footsteps walking up the stairs. Then I heard a key turning in a lock. And realisation struck me. They were the new neighbours.