it seemed like only minutes had passed before we were pulling into my old driveway and up to the two story house that i'd grown up in. my grandparents van was parked along one side of the driveway, giving hint that they'd stayed home with my baby brother whom i had yet to meet.
i looked to kian, seeing him film a little of the house's front before turning the camera towards me. i hurriedly made a goofy face before taking my hand and shoving the camera away from its view of me. he just laughed, closing the viewfinder and lying the camera in his lap. my father opened the garage door, pulling the car inside and putting it in park.
after we all climbed out, kian and i went around to the back end to carry our luggage inside. i'd pulled mine out from the trunk only to have kian take it from me and carry it along with his own. before i could protest with kian to let me carry my own suitcase, my mother held my shoulder and spoke.
"somebody is going to be super excited to meet you," she smiled, following behind toby and elizabeth who were making their way inside. "he might be sleeping so let's all be mindful to be kind of quiet," she reminded, opening the door to show the dark entryway.
"so where is h-?" i asked, feeling around on the wall where i remembered the light switch being. once the lights illuminated the room, i was greeted with a bunch of familiar faces that shouted 'surprise!' when i noticed them scattered around.
my parents had gotten all of my close family and friends together to welcome me home which really meant a lot to me. my grandma was the first who'd come rushing to me, embracing me tightly as she wept into my shoulder. "hi mimi," i laughed, calling her what all the grand kids knew her as. my grandpa then swooped in, hugging me tightly as well as the smile on his face looked dangerously large.
"i've missed you both so much," i smiled, wiping the happy tears that had welled up in my eyes. i hugged my aunt and uncle next, telling them how good it was to see them before making my way over into the the bigger circle of all my old friends.
makayla ran to me first, hugging me so tightly that she almost caused the two of us to topple over. "i'm so glad you're home, livi!" she screeched, finally pulling away so my other friends could hug me as well.
i then caught up with my other two friends, lola and emily, giving them both a hug before they parted way and revealed a better view of ryan richardson. not only was he my old guy best friend, but he was also my biggest crush since the fifth grade.
"wow, olivia, you look even more amazing than always," he smiled seconds before pulling me into a tight embrace, causing me to completely forget that anyone else was in the room. coming back to reality, i pulled away quickly and rushed over to kian who was standing in the corner and probably feeling very awkward.
"everyone, this is my best friend," i smiled as i pushed kian in front of me a bit where they were all able to see him, "kian lawley."
kian just sort of stood still waving to everyone with a simple smile on his face. "olivia's told me all about you guys. it's nice to meet everyone," he said before looking down to me momentarily.
while i was smiling admirably up at kian, my father started a conversation. "alright, everyone, kat and i have decided we'd like kind of a private time with olivia and kian so that they can get settled in and spend some time with the family. i'm sure olivia will be around long enough for you guys to hang out. sorry to be a buzz kill," he laughed towards the end.
my friends were all very understanding so leaving wasn't a problem. "livi, we have to get together while you and hottie over there are still in town," makayla smirked, holding up her hand in the form of a phone before winking at him from across the room.
i rolled my eyes, practically pushing her out of the door and waving goodbye to all of my friends. as everyone else was making the way to their cars, ryan was the only one who stayed behind. i smiled as i watched him walk back to the porch where i stood, being lightly winded by the chilled december air.
tennessee's weather resembled some sort of switch; some days it was similar to the california air whereas some days felt like you were living in antarctica. today's weather seemed to be warmer than how most winters typically are, however the sun was setting and it was now becoming cold.
i crossed my arms over my chest to keep them as warm as possible while ryan began speaking. "i know we haven't really kept in touch since you've moved to los angeles, but i've had my mind on you ever since you left. i really miss you being able to hang out with me everyday and how close we used to be," he said before he sucked his lips inward.
he took his jacket off and draped it around my shoulders in an attempt to keep me warm. i smiled before hugging his tightly and resting my head on his shoulder. "i've missed you too, ryan," i whispered.
as he pulled out of our hug, he kissed my check quickly before walking down the few steps and out to his car. with the biggest smile on my face, i went back inside to see kian sitting at the kitchen table with elizabeth and toby gathered around him as they all played on snapchat or something. my mother, father, and grandma were cooking dinner while i noticed my grandpa seated on the couch with lucas in his arms.
"you must be lucas," i smiled, taking the baby from my grandpa's lap and held him against my chest. surprisingly, he adapted to me fairly quickly and never cried or got fussy once while i held him.
lucas just seemed to smile up at me with the few teeth he had showing through to me as i felt a presence approach behind me. "he's so cute," kian cooed, tickling his stomach lightly with a single finger.
the more kian played with lucas, the baby seemed to reach towards him. i gave in, handing him over to kian to see the biggest smile come across both of their faces.
"okay, everyone. dinner's ready," my mother smiled, calling everyone to eat.
hey everyone! i hope you enjoyed this chapter :) much love ♥️
