𝐉𝐄𝐀𝐋𝐎𝐔𝐒 || 𝐈𝐒𝐀𝐀𝐂 𝐆𝐀𝐑𝐂𝐈𝐀

ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀ ᴏɴᴇ

The breeze ran through Brooklyn's hair once she stepped out of her car, the familiar smell of nature filling her nose. It smelled like home. She excitedly walked up to the door with her suitcase dragging along behind her. After a quick knock, Katherine opened the door with an immediate smile.

"Oh my goodness, you've grown so much, sweetie." Katherine hugged her tightly, swaying a little before pulling away. "Almost everyone's at the table, I haven't said a word." She smiled, knowing that Brooklyn wanted to surprise them.

"Thanks, Katherine." The girl walked in, praying that the floor boards wouldn't creak and give away her presence. Slowly, she made it to the outside of the dining room, listening in to the conversation.

"You know what's missing this Thanksgiving?" Lee asked, already in a bad mood after his father hadn't called to wish him and his brother a happy Thanksgiving. "What?" Issac replied to his brother. "Brook." The whole table groaned in annoyance, all upset that he brought up the fact that Brooklyn wasn't with them.

"Don't bring the mood down man, she's still in LA." Cole replied in a defeated tone. Brooklyn took that as her cue to reveal herself. "She is?" Brooklyn joined in, a playful smirk on her face.

The room was silent for a moment before they all processed what had just happened. Alex - her best friend - was the first to react, he jumped up, tackling her in a tight hug. "Brook." He whispered as if he didn't believe it himself. She giggled lightly, reciprocating the hug just as tight.

"Moreno." Cole greeted. "Walter." Brooklyn mirrored. "It's good to have you back." He said genuinely, pulling her into a side hug and ruffling her hair into a frizzy mess. "Thanks. It's good to be back."

Eventually, she had hugged each of the Walters. Then all that was left was Lee and Issac. They both ran up to her, embracing her in a tight hold. "We missed you so much, Brooks." Lee admitted. After a long hug, they all hesitantly let go.

"Well, tell us everything, how was filming? Was it magical? Did you meet any famous people? Is New York just like how we imagined?" Danny asked, flooding her with questions of his own curioucity.

"We have plenty of time to talk about it, but for now, I'm starving." Brooklyn smiled. "Sit beside me." Alex offered, pulling out an extra chair, seating her right between Alex and Nathan and across from Issac. "What? That's not fair, I want to sit with her." Lee complained.

Brooklyn chuckled as Mr. Walter stopped them. "You'll all have plenty of time to sit with her at dinners, okay? She isn't going anywhere yet." He clarified. Jordan looked out the window. "Wait, is that your car?" He referred to the matte black Mercedes parked outside the ranch.

Brooklyn nodded. "You can drive?" Lee looked shocked. "Got my license a few weeks ago." She smiled, putting scoops of food onto her plate.

"So since you're staying, does that mean you're gonna come back to school?" Nathan asked, changing the subject while taking a bite of his mashed potatoes. "Yes, she will." Katherine answered for her. "Thanks for reminding me, I'm going to need one of you to show her around. Many things changed since she left." They all perked up, each of them offering to do so.

"Wait, who's this?" Brooklyn cut the debate short, referring to an unfamiliar girl sitting at the table with them. "I'm Jackie." She replied softly. Despite being a bit lost on who she was, Brooklyn didn't ask any questions. "Nice to meet you." Brook smiled. "I promise I'll make a better impression once I get food in my system." She said, exhausted from her travels. Jackie smiled back in response.