Will You Love Me? : The Golden Years

Chapter 29

"Scarlett, let's go!" You could hear Ben call her from outside. Scar was currently having a bit of a tough time leaving her room. "You'll be back in a few months for Christmas," you assured. "We'll keep everything the same, I promise." She nodded, then turned to you. You couldn't tell if she was sad or excited. 

She was beyond thrilled to get her uniform the other day and almost refused to take it off. Now, she was picking at it as if she wanted it gone. "Hey," you said as you knelt down in front of her, "I know you're nervous. It's perfectly okay to be, especially when you're moving to a new school. I did this plenty of times when I was your age."

Scar seemed to be a bit interested and asked, "Really?" You nodded and told her, "Yeah and no matter how many times it happened, I was just as nervous and scared as the first time." She nodded and cracked a small smile. 

"What if I don't like it?" She asked. You smoothed down her skirt, then told her, "Give it a month or two, but if by then you still don't like it, call us and your father will come pick you up." She looked anywhere but you as she asked, "Won't he be disappointed?"

You pulled her in for a hug as you said, "Never. He is so proud of you right now, we both are, for just trying this. You could never disappoint us, sweetie." She hugged you tight, probably tighter than she ever has. 

"Scarlett!" Ben's voice boomed. You sighed and pulled back from the hug. "Ready?" You asked. She nodded with a smile and took your hand as you went downstairs. Em, Nate and Conner were all waiting by the car, looking very tired since it was only five in the morning. 

Ben sighed in relief that you two had come out, then quickly said, "Go on and say goodbye." Nate was the first to pull her in for a hug and said, "Bye, Squirt. See you in a few months." Emma was next, saying, "We'll miss you, Bug. Have fun."

Conner was crying too much to say much of anything. "Come on, buddy," Ben softly said, "say bye to your sister." Conner took in a shaky breath, then said, "B-Bye, Scar." They both hugged each other as if their life depended in it. 

Ben had the displeasure of having to break it up after a few moments. "Uncle Tom will be here in a few hours to take you guys to school. We'll be back in time to pick you up and take you to your driver's test. Are you guys ready?"

Em and Nate seemed a bit unsure, but nodded. "Alright, we'll see you guys in a bit," you said as you got into the car. The drive there was long and silent for Scar. You thought she was a bit too nervous to talk. 

"So, honey," Ben said as he took your hand, "Adam called this morning and told me the locations we scouted out have gotten approved. Filming won't be starting as soon as we hoped because we still have to get through casting and costume and all that. Hopefully we can get that done in time, but we doubt it. Other than that, we've got the funding and the go-ahead."

You nodded and said, "Great! What are we going to do about the kids, though?" He shrugged, then said, "Well, Em and Nate are almost seventeen. I mean, they'll only have to look after Conner now and he's not much trouble. They can come out on the weekends."

You had to think about that one and he knew that. "Scar," he said, changing the subject, "are you excited for your first day?" She shrugged as she said, "I guess." He frowned at that and looked to you. "She's just nervous," you assured.

"Well," Ben said, "if at any time you want to come home, just call us. Just remember to give it some time." She looked out the window and sighed. You knew once she got in the class and made some friends, she would probably never want to come home.

She fell asleep when you were almost there, so you took that opportunity to tell Ben what Scar said about him being disappointed if she wanted to leave. "Seriously?" He asked. "Why...why would I be disappointed? I'm so proud of her for even trying this!"

"That's what I told her," you said. "I think she just needs some reassuring." 

When you got to the school, Gerald was there to meet you. Ben unloaded Scar's luggage from the car and followed Gerald to her dorm. As you all walked, she was holding on tightly to your hand. "This is your dorm room," Gerald said as he opened the door. "Unfortunately, we ran out of students who needed roommates, so you'll be on your own for now. Who knows, a kid may want to leave and you'll be paired up."

You and Ben helped her unpack and get settled in before her first class. "Alright, Princess," Ben said as he sat next to her on the bed, "your mum and I should get going pretty soon here. Are you alright?" She didn't seem to sure, but she told him, "Yeah. I'm fine."

He kissed her on the head, then told her, "I am so proud of you. I don't care if you want to come home, I will be proud of you no matter what. Okay?" That got her to crack a smile. "Okay," she told him. He smiled, then gave her a big kiss on the forehead. "Go say goodbye to your mum."

She hopped off the bed and ran over to you, hugging your legs. You picked her up as best as you could and gave her a big hug. "Make sure you call and check-in," you told her. "I want to hear how you're doing, okay?" She nodded into your neck and you set her down. Just as you did that, the five minute warning bell rang. 

"Here's your bag," Ben said as he put it around her shoulders. "I love you, darling. We'll see you for Christmas." She nodded and gave him one last hug before following the other students to the classes.

Ben walked you both out to the car in silence, but once you got in, the floodgates opened. "Alright, come here," he said, opening his arms. You leaned over and buried your face into his neck as he rubbed your back. "It's alright, it's okay," he kept saying. "She's going to be fine and so are you."

Once you were out of tears, Ben took you out for a long breakfast nearby. By the time you got back home, it was time to pick up the kids. Em and Nate had to immediately be taken to their driver's test. 

"This is almost too much for one day," you told Ben as you sat and waited for the kids to come back from the test. Conner was doing his homework, but getting easily distracted by everything around him. "I know, sweetheart," Ben told you. "We'll take the kids out tonight and try to forget how they're all growing up so fast."

Twenty minutes later, Em came bouncing towards you, flashing her temporary license. Nate, on the other hand, didn't look to happy. "What happened?" Ben asked him. Before he could say anything, Em said, "He ran over a curb, hit a cone and made an illegal left turn. He failed."

Nate shot her a glare while you and Ben were shooting glares at him. "Nathaniel, please tell me she's lying," you begged. He only sighed and shook his head. Ben rubbed his forehead and said, "Right...right, well I know what kind of father-son bonding we'll be doing tomorrow. Em, baby, I'm so proud of you."

He kissed her head and looked at her temporary license. "I know who's driving us to dinner tonight," he told you with a smirk. Em squealed and jumped around as Nate rolled his eyes. "Hey," you said, pointing at him, "quit it. Don't be mad at your sister because she passed something you should have. You'll practice with your dad tomorrow and you'll re-take the test."

"Yeah, and Em," Ben gently said, "don't jump around too much, honey. Your tubes are about to fall off." She huffed and fixed her oxygen tubes. "Alright," Ben continued, "dinner's on me."