With the Lights Off...

(54): Real

*So, much love for the last chapter. Thanks for that! :) To everyone with IG, follow meeee @camzieebautista. Title is from a fave Years & Years song. The one featured here is a mashup with a Basement Jaxx song. Come on you guys, jump on the Y&Y train. They are amazeballs, ugh :) Anyway, I wanted Mike Vogel to play Bolton Alexander. Just because, look at him. HAHA.

Nina's POV

"Sweetie, you two can always come back and stay here whenever you want," Mum said, giving me a tight hug. "We missed you so much."

I smiled and kissed her on the cheek. "We'll be here more often than you'd want, Mum. I promise," I said. "I missed you guys, too."

Dad snaked his arms from behind me, sandwiching me between him and Mum. "I do hope that the next time you come back, there'd be a little Nina or a little Ian running to greet us, too."

"Oh, you don't have to worry about that, Dad. I'll get you three," Ian snickered. I rolled my eyes and Dad smiled.

They both let me go and stood side by side. "Enjoy this vacation, my love," Dad said. "You two need and deserve it."

Without waiting for me to answer, he grabbed Ian and enveloped him in an equally tight hug. "You take care, you hear?" he said. "Of both of you."

He smiled and said, "You can count on me."

"I know I can," Dad answered. "It's the rest of those people surrounding you in LA."

Ian nodded, knowing fully well who Dad was talking about. I smirked a bit and wrapped my arms around Ian.

"We wish you two could just stick around and stay here with us," Mum said.

"There are plenty more next times, Mum," Ian answered for me.

She nodded, a tiny tear escaping from her eyes. "Darn, I said I wasn't going to cry."

Ian and I shook our heads and rushed to give her the tightest of hugs. Dad hugged Mum and we were just one heap of crying people, all tied in with a laughing Aleks.

"You are all making me emotional," he said. Everyone laughed and let go of one another, but Aleks grabbed me and hugged me tight. "Princess, I missed you loads."

I kissed him on the cheek and said, "I missed you too, Pirate."

He laughed and turned to look at Ian. "Now, you Mister. Take care of my sister, okay? Hurt her, I break your balls into tiny shards."

Ian's eyes opened wide, but his lips turned up in a smirk. "Duly noted, my brother," he said.

Aleks saluted him and said, "I mean it."

"I don't doubt it for a second," Ian answered, giving him that awkward one-arm man hug thing.

"We're a lucky family," Aleks said, smiling at Ian. He nodded and said, "Nah, I'm the lucky guy."

"We're not really good at goodbyes, so could you just wait till we get inside and -."

Before Mum finished the sentence, all three of them raced back inside the house and closed the door.

Ian stood in front of me, looking at me with a dumbfounded look on his face. "What just happened?"

I looked back at the house and at my family, hiding behind the door. I knew they were crying again. Just like they did when I left the first time.

"They are the worst people to say goodbye to," I said, sniffling a little. "They're not going to come out now, because I know that they're crying behind that door."