Riley’s dad started a new business. Then her parents sold their home in Minnesota, and the family moved to San Francisco. Just like that, Riley’s life was turned upside down.

The car ride across the country was long, and Riley’s Emotions started to get restless. “Why don’t we just live in this smelly car? We’ve already been in it forever,” said Disgust, looking at the other Emotions.

Joy pointed out that the ride gave them plenty of time to imagine what the new house would look like. She plugged a cloud-shaped disc into the console as the Emotions reviewed all the great options they had thought up. Joy loved the image of the gingerbread house with the candy shutters. Anger liked the one of a dark castle that came with its very own fire-breathing dragon.

When Dad finally drove down their new block, the Emotions waited anxiously. They held their breath as Riley stepped out of the car and looked at the house…

It was NOTHING like what they had imagined.

“Maybe it’s nice on the inside,” Joy said cheerfully as she looked at the run-down Victorian.

But the inside was even worse! It was small, dark, and creepy, and it smelled weird. “We’re supposed to live here?” Anger shouted.

“Do we have to?” Sadness said.

“Can you die from moving?” asked Fear nervously.

“I’m gonna be sick,” said Disgust, noticing a dead mouse in the corner.

Joy reminded everyone how cool Dad said Riley’s new bedroom was and suggested they check it out. Excited, Riley hurried upstairs to see it.

“No, no, no, no,” said Fear, taking in the dismal view.

The room was ridiculously small, and it had a sloped ceiling, which made it feel even smaller. A gloomy mood fell over the Emotions.

“I’m starting to envy the dead mouse,” said Disgust.

“Oh, Riley can’t live here,” added Sadness.

As usual, Joy tried to get everyone to look on the bright side. “I read somewhere that an empty room is an opportunity,” she said excitedly. She got everybody to imagine how great the room would look with all of Riley’s stuff set up. “We’ll put the bed there. And the desk over there…” Soon, they were all thinking about how they could fix up the room.

“And the hockey lamp goes there…” Fear added.

As they thought about Riley’s posters, books, and glow-in-the-dark stars, they began to feel better. “Let’s go get our stuff from the moving van!” Joy said.

Riley dashed back downstairs to see if the moving van had arrived yet. When she entered the living room, she saw Dad hang up the phone, and she could tell he was annoyed. “Well, guess what?” he said. “The moving van won’t be here until Thursday!”

“You’re kidding!” said Mom.

The news stressed out the family, and Mom and Dad began to argue. “You said it would be here yesterday!” said Mom.

“I know that’s what I said,” said Dad. “That’s what they told me!”

The move to the new house was not off to a very good start.

Joy acted quickly. “I’ve got a great idea!” she said, clicking an idea bulb into the console.

Suddenly, Riley smiled. She grabbed her hockey stick and dropped a crumpled-up piece of paper on the floor. “Anderson makes her move. She’s closing in!” Riley said playfully as she used her hockey stick to move the wad of paper across the floor like a puck.

“Oh, no you’re not!” Dad said, grabbing a broom to use as a makeshift stick.

Riley slid across the hardwood floor in her socks as though she were on skates. She dribbled the paper toward the fireplace and whacked it in. “She shoots, and she scores! Woo-hoo!” Riley said, celebrating.

The Emotions cheered, and Joy turned to look out the back window of Headquarters. Family Island shone in the distance, powered up and running.

“Come on, Grandma!” Riley said as she skated around Mom.

“Grandma?” Mom said, putting her hair up in a ponytail. She grabbed a pillow to use as she played goalie, guarding the fireplace.

For a moment, the family forgot about their stress and enjoyed playing together in the empty living room. A golden memory rolled through Headquarters.

Then Dad’s phone rang, quickly ending the game.

“The investor’s supposed to show up on Thursday, not today,” he said after hanging up. “I gotta go.”

“It’s okay,” said Mom. “We get it.”

“You’re the best,” Dad said, and kissed Mom goodbye. “See you, sweetie,” he said, waving at Riley.

“Dad just left us,” said Fear.

“Oh, he doesn’t love us anymore. That’s sad,” Sadness said, stepping up to the console. “I should drive, right?”

Joy quickly blocked her. “You know what I’ve realized?” she said, trying to come up with a way to turn the situation around. “Riley hasn’t had lunch!” Joy yanked a memory sphere off the wall and played it, revealing a pizza shop Riley had noticed earlier, when they were in the car.

“Hey, I saw a pizza place down the street,” Riley said to Mom. “Maybe we could try that?”

“Pizza sounds delicious,” Mom said.

The Emotions cheered, and Joy smiled, happy to see that things were back on track.