This is the second installment of the series, 'Four plus one'. The first chapter, Monkey Bars, is in the First Time category: it will make more sense if you start there. Or you can just read on and enjoy this one! Please vote or comment if you like it.
*****
It happened. The whole idea seemed to have a life of its own and, while everyone was excited (and just a little frightened) about it, no one could recall actually committing to it or even persuading others to it. So it just happened, almost by itself. That allowed everyone to think they were not forcing anyone, rather they were agreeing with the proposal, that clearly one of the others must have made.
Danny found a place. His work with cars and trucks gave him a few contacts across the city, one of which came good.
"It's a funny old place, old inner suburb, near a workshop I used to go to. It's seen better days, that's for sure. It's bigger than the houses around it, so we can infer it was the original house on the land."
Infer. Danny's striking choice of words.
"One driveway, no garage, a shed, a bit of garden which needs a lot of love, beautiful coloured glass around the door, rough old kitchen, only one bathroom... but most importantly, five bedrooms!"
In fact, one of the bedrooms was not. It was a glassed-in veranda, but Danny volunteered for that one. "Nicer than a good few places I've called home" was his cheerful comment. A few rugs covered the old floorboards (sanded down to remove the worst bumps), while Perspex sheets fitted over most of the louvres made it surprisingly snug.
Furniture was found or scrounged - Phoebe had an endless supply of relatives with too much stuff. Kerbside collections were a treasure trove. Danny produced a very unfriendly chemical which stripped the grease off walls. Andrea got hold of some white paint to freshen up the kitchen and part of the hall. She also repaired the stair-rail. Someone's father even found some topsoil to revive the garden. Everyone helped willingly. The excitement built as each improvement was finished or new person arrived.
In a very short space of time, all five were out of their parents' houses or their old rooms and into The Love Shack, as someone inevitably called it.
Mel was last in. A celebration dinner was called: supermarket lasagne with a cheap and cheerful red. The garlic bread by contrast was carefully hand-made with butter and fresh garlic. It filled the house with a warm, inviting smell. Atlantia had found a box of candles and a book of matches ("When were phone numbers that short?" someone asked). It could not have been a better start for the household.
They took their glasses into the lounge room and flopped down onto the mismatched couches. Danny and Atlantia found themselves side by side with the others opposite and around them. The laughs and the cheerful talk felt like it could go on all night.
"That was better than any meal we could've bought in a restaurant."
"You think? Better than any meal we could afford, maybe!"
"Y'know, we are totally insane to take this on! How on earth is this going to work?"