Season Of Love (gxg) | ✍︎︎

10. Back Home.

Hope couldn't do anything but shake her head because that sounds just like Nina Turner. There isn't a woman more extra on the planet. "She has good intentions."

"Well, I'm not complaining," Katherine chimed in. "I could definitely use a good home-cooked meal."

"Then let's not keep you girls waiting any longer!" Norman announced, taking up the job of pushing the cart with their luggage on it through the airport.

~

"Nadine! Nadine, baby girl!" Nina was standing outside on the porch yelling her name and frantically waving her arms as they drove onto the driveway. And the second Norman put the car in park, she was running down the steps and towards the passenger side where Hope was sitting.

"Oh my God," Hope mumbled as her mother approached the car. She was happy to see her mom, but she wasn't ready for the excess amount of love she knew her mother would suffocate her with the first few days of being there.

"Open the door!" Nina knocked on the window as if Hope weren't staring directly at her through the glass.

Hope made no move to open the door, so her father unlocked all of them from the driver's side. And as soon as Nina heard the clicking sound, she swung the door open and practically pulled Hope out of the car and into one of the tightest hugs she'd ever experienced in her life.

"Mama," Hope gasped because she couldn't breathe from how tight her mother was holding her.

"I'm sorry, I've just missed you so much."

"You just saw me a few months ago," Hope reminded her.

"That was close to a year ago now."

"Mom, this is Katherine," Hope took the chance to introduce her when she stepped out of the car so her mom wouldn't start going on about how long it's been since she last saw her.

"It's so nice to meet you, Mrs. Turner."

"Nina is just fine, baby," she said as she pulled Katherine into a hug much gentler than the one she gave Hope.

"And thank you guys again for letting me stay with you. I know it was last minute, so I hope it doesn't feel like I'm intruding," Katherine said to both Nina and Norman.

"Oh, of course not," Nina dramatically waved her hands in the air. "It's no problem. You're family to Nadine, so you're family to us too." She turned to her husband before continuing. "Norman, honey, can you please bring their bags up for them?"

She asked him even though there wasn't a chance he would let them touch the bags or bring them up a flight of stairs under his watch.

"Of course." Norman opened the trunk and started to unload their luggage. And as he passed Nina, with a heavy suitcase in either hand, he still stopped in front of her to place a kiss on her cheek before making his way into the house. And after over 45 years of being married to each other, Norman still makes her blush like it's the first day.

"Aww, you guys are a beautiful couple," Katherine couldn't help that she smiled just from seeing Nina's smile.

"Oh, trust me, you'll get tired of it soon enough," Hope warned. "It gets old real quick."

"She's just jealous," Nina teased.  "And Nadine, oh my God," her mother smooshed her cheeks in with her palms, looking directly into her eyes with a very concerned look on her face. "Is there no good food on the west coast? Why do you look so thin and frail?"

Hope did not particularly like that the first thing Nina did was point out her weight and how much of it she had seemingly lost. Hope was also wearing a jacket and sweats, which made her feel a little worse about the unintentional weight loss if her mother could so easily point it out even through multiple layers.