I slowly made my way back home in the darkness, with only the dim light of the streetlamps to guide my path. I made sure to avoid dark alleyways, as I was scared to get mugged like I did before. I slowly but surely approached the apartment where I lived with my family, scared of what my mother would say for me being back so late considering I left the house in the middle of one of her angry lectures. I made my way to the broken door and turned the knob slowly as I pushed the door open. There they were, sitting on the floor around the radio, one of our only possessions left. We lost almost everything when the stock market crashed and we were evicted from our home on the Upper East Side. Madeline looked up when she heard the high pitched squeaking of the door.

"Mama, Amelia is home!" She said, smiling. She jumped up and ran over to me, hugging me tightly.

"Hi Maddy, what have you guys been doing?" I said softly, hugging her back.

"We've been so worried, Mama was very upset after you left, she was scared you would not come back. We have been listening for any news about you in case there was danger." Maddy said, pulling back as Papa got up.

"Oh, ma fleur(my flower), I was so worried about you, are you okay?" He asked, pulling me into his warm embrace.

"Oui Papa, I'm fine, although someone stole my purse, but a nice policeman named Mathieu Bonnefoy stopped the crook who did it. He was very sweet." I said, smiling at the thought of Mathieu.

"You met Mathieu? He was the son of one of my colleagues, remember? You met him une ou deux fois (once or twice) when you were just un enfant(a child). How is he now? I have not seen them in ages." Papa asked, smiling as he remembered his old friend.

"I believe they are well, Papa. Mathieu was very kind to me, though we didn't remember each other." I said as my mother walked into the room.

"AMELIA! NEVER RUN OFF LIKE THAT AGAIN! I WAS WORRIED SICK!" She shouted, hugging me tightly as warm tears streamed down her face. "Yes mother, I won't." I said patting her back lightly to comfort her. "I'm safe, everything will be okay. I promise." I said, smiling at her as she pulled away. "You had better be safe, although you're freezing cold, and you must be starving, all of you. Come now, into the kitchen. I made supper." Mother said, ushering us all into the small kitchen we had, which barely fit a small table, four chairs, a very small refrigerator, a sink, an oven, and a very small rubbish bin. On the table was a small piece of boiled chicken and greens on each plate, and there was a small apple pie in the middle of the table, behind the glasses of water.

"Where did the pie come from?" Mother asked, looking at all of us. Maddy blushed. "Um.. I got it, I went out yesterday looking for a job and found one for five cents, I thought we could use a small treat after what's happened, you know?" She said, looking down. "Thank you Maddy, that was so sweet of you." Mother said, kissing her cheek. We all sat down and said grace, then began to eat the small portions of supper we had been able to buy a few days before.

We finished eating soon, not to anyone's surprise, and waited a bit to eat the pie. We decided to pass the time by listening to the radio. There was a lot going on, and after we lost so much we just wanted to listen to the news and see how they were going to try to fix the economy now, with Franklin Roosevelt as President.

"I do not zhink zhat zis new President is going to fix anyzhing." Papa said, scowling as he got up from his chair. "Oh Papa, it will be okay, I'm sure he is better than the last." Maddy said, standing as well and putting her hand on his shoulder. "Let us go, we should eat zhe pie before it goes bad, non?" Papa said, smiling slightly as he turned and walked into the kitchen. "Come, let us eat zhis pie my dear Madeline was so kind to get." Papa said, motioning us over as he cut small slices and put them on the last few china plates we had. "Merci," Maddy and I said as we took our plates and kissed Papa on the cheek, sitting down to eat the pie.

Mother walked in a few minutes later and whispered something in Papa's ear, causing him to get up. "Really? Mon dieu, okay. Take care of zhe girls while I am gone!" He said, kissing us all on the cheek before throwing on his old coat and running out the door. "Mother, where is Papa going?" I asked, very confused at the current situation. "I got a letter saying that the city needed him to help repair roads for a few dollars an hour, so maybe we could go out and see a movie tomorrow if he gets paid soon enough. How would you girls like that?" Mother said, smiling warmly.

"Of course, thank you so much!!" Maddy said, grinning from ear to ear as she gave Mother a hug. "You're welcome dear." Mother replied, sitting down and taking a piece of pie. She began to eat it and soon finished the small piece as Maddy and I put our plates in the sink.

"Here girls, I'll wash the dishes and you two go set up the beds. You know where the blankets are," Mother said as she put her plate in the sink and got the rag to wash the dishes with, turning on the water as Maddy and I nodded and went into the living room. We grabbed the broken basket with the old blankets in it and laid the four small ones on the floor, then put a larger blanket over the four. This was how we all slept, and when it was cold we didn't put blankets underneath us, we just used them to keep warm so we didn't get frostbite in the winter.

Mother came back out in a few minutes and we sat in front of the radio listening to a funny broadcast while we waited for Papa to return home. The sun had set already so it was getting colder in our little rundown apartment. "Let's get under the blankets, I don't want you two to get too cold." Mother said, getting up and turning off the radio as Maddy and I went over and lifted the large blanket, letting Maddy go under before I crawled underneath and took off my heels and pulled on my slippers, trying to keep my feet warm in the semi cold spring night.

"Goodnight girls, sweet dreams. I love you," Mother said as she laid down next to us. "Goodnight mum, I love you too," I said, yawning.

"Goodnight mother," Maddy said, falling asleep. Soon after we were all asleep, dreaming of a new America where we didn't have to live like this ever again.