Finding My Way Back

Chapter 14

Chapter 14

Brooke was back before long. Reed and I had remained in the basement for the duration of our alone time, and I had to admit, as soon as I heard the garage door opening and Brooke's car pulling in, a feeling of disappointment rushed through me.

It wasn't that I didn't like Brooke's company. Like I had noticed before, her bubbly personality reminded me of Jess. And remembering Jess and all of our good times back home in Portland always gave me a feeling of comfort.

So I was terribly confused when she burst through the front door, calling out "I'm back from trash land," and I wasn't even excited to go upstairs and greet her. Reed had looked at me from across the couch with his shining blue eyes, acknowledging his sister's arrival, and I just craved more time with him.

Okay, we didn't even spend that much time together. He gave me a tour of the house. He showed me the upstairs—including his room—and his not so secret anymore basement. But after we had finally gotten a few moment to relax on the couch and start talking, Brooke busted through the door. I wasn't exactly pleased, but I scorned myself for feeling that way. Brooke was my first friend in this town, and I wasn't going to ditch her completely just to spend time with her attractive brother.

I went upstairs and Brooke emphasized once again how helpful I was with cleaning up. I expressed how I was happy to help, and then I feigned a quiet yawn.

"Oh gosh, it's already five," I exclaimed, checking the clock on my phone.

"Yeah, it is!"

"I need to get home," I said apologetically. "My parents wanted to take me out to dinner tonight, and we'll be leaving really soon!"

"How fun! Go ahead and go, we'll talk really soon. Maybe we'll hang out in the next few days, just the two of us, without even having to clean up my house!" Brooke said excitedly.

"Sounds great," I smiled.

Reed stepped out into the open. An expressionless look was on his face for a moment, then his eyes lit up and he gave a small wave. "It was nice hanging out with you again, Ella."

I smiled in return. "Yeah, we'll do it again soon," I said hopefully.

With that I left, walking out into the late afternoon breeze. A bit of dust flew through the air as I crossed the skinny road and entered my front yard.

I was surprised to see Dad's car in the driveway, yet I remembered that here in Orland he would be leaving for work early and not getting home as late as he did in Portland. He was thrilled about that aspect of his new job, for he would be able to spend more time with us in the evenings. I thought that would be nice too—I never really spent much quality time with both him and my mom back home.

I opened the front door and was instantly squished by my dad's large arms circling around me and grasping me in a tight hug. "Ella!"

I let out a small laugh. "What's up, Dad?"

"I just had a great day at work, it's the perfect place for me, it really is," he beamed as he took a short step back. "And I'm hungry and excited to take my girls out to dinner."

Mom stepped out into the family room, a grin plastered across her face as well. "Are you both ready? I heard there's a great barbecue place in town!"

"Yep, all set!" Dad exclaimed happily.

* * *

Whoever my mom heard it from, they were right. The barbecue place was amazing, and after stuffing ourselves, we all leaned back in the cushiony booth.