Through the Eyes of a Storm

Chapter 21

I heard Gryffin sigh softly in the same way he always did when he was amused; he almost never laughed anymore, but I knew how to read him after all these years. Before I even turned around to look at his face, I knew exactly what he was going to say, and I groaned, burying my face in my hands.

"You do realize you're too short to see that she's standing twenty feet away from us right?"

I could hear the smirk on his voice, and as hard as I tried to be mad at him for teasing me about my height, it was all I could do but blush slightly and giggle.

"You are so mean to me, you know that?" He shrugged, the smirk still tugging at his lips. It was only when he smiled that he looked anything like his brother to me; without that spark in his eyes, I just couldn't see it, identical twins or not.

Tearing my eyes away from his smirk, I sighed and looked back toward the crowd. This was it. The first of many moments I had been fearing since my parents first told me I was going to be living here. It didn't matter how much I loved my aunt, only that she was the person that had been willing to take me away from my home, to keep me here. I knew that if Gryffin wasn't here, I wouldn't be as together as I was in that moment.

I didn't realize how long I had been standing there, frozen in place, until I felt the familiar touch of Gryffin's hand on my lower back. I melted into the contact, but as much as I wanted to stay there, he pushed me forward gently until I had to take a step in the right direction. Once the first one had been taken, I didn't stop, instead shoving my way through the airport crowd to get to my aunt, who anxiously awaited me on the other side. I knew Gryffin couldn't come with me yet since she had no idea I'd brought someone with me. He had other places to stay if he wasn't able to stay with us, but from what I remembered of her, she would be more than welcoming.

The moment I saw her, all the memories of her from my childhood came rushing back; her curly, light brown hair and chocolate eyes just like mine; her horrible sense of fashion that could only ever suit her; her amazing baking and her horrible cooking; all the bedtime stories she would read to me, even when my parents thought I was too old. She wasn't just an aunt, she'd been one of my best friends for a long time. And the moment I realized that, the tears I had been holding back escaped, and I dropped my bag on the ground to run and throw my arms around her, burying my face in her neck and breaking down into sobs.

I heard her say something comforting to me as her arms wrapped tightly around me and her hands soothed up and down my back, but I couldn't make out what it was. It felt amazing to finally just cry my eyes out to someone who would comfort me; not just anyone, but family. Gryffin, I knew, would be there for me, but it felt good to know I still had actual family that cared about me too. It's what I had been missing for so long.

After what seemed like forever, the tears finally stopped coming and my sobs turned to shaky, yet strong breaths. I pulled away from my aunt and swiped away the leftover tears under my eyes with a sheepish smile. The second I looked down at my aunt's outfit, a much needed laugh bubbled to my lips. One of the ugliest sweaters I had ever seen, paired with mint coloured jeans and yellow, retro-as-all-hell shoes.

"God, Aunt Jo, where did you even find your clothes?" She grinned and shrugged, not caring the slightest bit what others thought of her. She could wear anything she wanted and pull it off.

"I never reveal my secrets," she winked, earning another smile. "Now, it has been way too long since I've been able to see my favourite niece-"

"I'm your only niece, Jo..."

"Shush! Don't you question me," she huffed playfully, waving off my amusement before continuing. "I haven't talked to you in ages; I've even missed all the teenage drama and boy problems!" The look of devastation on her face made me sigh and laugh at the same time; I don't think I ever could have remembered how crazy she was - it was only to be experienced.