Finding Home (Complete)

3. Memories.

Present Day

At the bottom of the arrival escalator my eyes spotted Liam and Taylor easily. They were waving a bright yellow, homemade banner with my name in giant bubble letters complete with balloons and flowers. I watch as their faces light up when their eyes land on me. I sprinted the rest of the distance and leaped onto Liam, laughter erupting around us.

"You look even better than when we visited the last time, Han!" Liam nearly shouted after placing me back on the ground. Taylor wrapped her arms around me tight, agreeing with him. I fought the blush creeping in my cheeks, taking in my surroundings. Excitement was as palpable as noticing the sunshine outside the windows. I couldn't wait to just smell the air here again.

"Hannah you look like you did when we first met!" Taylor's voice carried above the bustle of the people around us. Liam grabbed my bag from me and we made our way to the car. It was a perfect end of August day, the sun warming everything it touched. The air wasn't heavy with humidity like on the east coast, no, it felt like the sun just wanted to hug you. I was however eager for the air conditioning by the time we made our way through the parking lot.

Nearing the car I realize this wasn't the normal old pick up truck Liam loved. He had that truck since he passed his driving test. Before rehab, I would've assumed he got rid of it as a way to throw away the memories of mom and dad, as they bought it for him. I smile realizing that I'm rational now, and know objects don't keep memories in them, you do.

The real reason: Liam and Taylor had upgraded after their wedding, opting for a brand new Ford Explorer. Something more reliable and wouldn't break down as much as an ancient, rusty truck. This thing was fully loaded with not only seat heaters, but seat AC as well as a back up camera. I felt like I had climbed into a spaceship. Liam was droning on about how he couldn't wait to try it out when it started snowing.

"How's married life?" I excitedly threw at Taylor, causing her to reach her arm in the back seat to show me the wedding band now accompanying the engagement ring. The thick band of silver was beautiful, their wedding date of March 18th engraved in it. They had chosen to get married on what would've been my parents thirtieth anniversary this past March. It made my heart swell to see that they never had forgotten them like I accused them of.

I was so wrong when I left....

Taylor giggled, flustered and my teeth hurt with how sweet her and Liam are together. I knew when he first brought her home his first year of college, that some day they'd be married and still crazy about each other.

"It's fantastic. Liam wants me working less at the hospital as he is now a head floor RN. I spend most of my time baking and crafting and just being happy. I do take care of my mom a lot lately, she doesn't have much left we think. I'm thankful to spend this time with her. Good practice for whenever we start a family." She explained. It makes me wonder how different the house is now. It changed a lot in the seven years before I left. I find myself wondering if Max is still living there too.

"Ahem, uh, I wanted to let you both know once I get a job, I promise I'll be finding my own place. It's your guy's home now. Anna has sone national organizations of addiction looking at my works of writing. She's certain they'll hire me to blog post. It shouldn't be long before I hear and then I can get my own place." I stuttered, trying to chase the lingering thoughts of Max from my mind. I can't let myself go back to that.

"Don't be ridiculous, Hannah. Taylor and I already discussed it, you're staying with us however long you want to. You're family." Liam said gripping the steering wheel, he was using his brotherly tone. It's the tone he used on me growing up, the same tone he used to tell me about Boston. He flashed a smile in the rear view mirror, his eyes letting me know he was telling the truth. They wanted me there.