Chapter Thirty-Six ; Track Six

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That morning, Riley left almost as soon as she woke up. I was up before she was awake, texting Awsten. She grabbed her backpack off of the floor by the couch and said goodbye, rubbing her eyes from tiredness.

I read the letter she gave me later that day before I entered the coffee shop to work.

Hi, Scarlet!

I figured it would be easier to write this to you than it would be to write to Awsten or the others. Also, I'm so scared to give this to Awsten so hopefully you got this letter. There are so many things I'd like to say to you but can't possibly fit on this piece of paper.

Firstly, thank you for making Awsten happy. I know it's hard to date someone as popular as Awsten, but we all really appreciate you, which is wild for a fanbase if I'm being honest. We see how happy he is when he talks about you and love you so much for that. What I'm trying to say is thank you.

Now that I know you're probably reading this, it's hard to write everything I want. I love you a lot and thank you for making Awsten happy.

Riley x.

I smiled down at the paper, placing it in the glove compartment, right above a picture Awsten gave me. It was the first picture we took together and he printed it out into polaroid form. This was before we even started dating.

My birthday would be coming up soon and Awsten had been bugging me about it at every second he had the chance. He won't give me any hints and it's so bothering since he constantly mentions it.

Getting out of the car, I shut the door and entered the coffee shop. I threw on an apron and began helping the customers. Much like any day, it was quite boring. I started disliking coming to work. I'd rather be at home, watching The Office, counting the days until I can see Awsten.

The day ended rather quickly, and I was the one to shut down. I had this very large craving to see my family again, as wild as it sounds. I know my sister still lives with them, being seventeen and all.

Checking my phone, I scrolled through the texts Awsten sent me.

Awsten

I wanna tell our friends now

If that's okay with you?

And then he texted me again twenty minutes later.

You know, nevermind

I'd like for you to be there when I say it

Then again thirty minutes later.

I miss you

My heart jumped reading all of it. I love him a lot. I put my phone away as I reversed the car and drove off.

Who knew if my parents were going to be home right now, but I wanted to see how they were doing. They don't know anything about my relationship with Awsten, possibly a bad thing since the baby bump was becoming obvious.

I don't care what shit they're gonna say. I set a route for their house which is about a twenty-minute drive away from my place; not too far. It wouldn't take too long while I listen to Entertainment, the CD Awsten gave me that day at the record store.

By the sixth song, I was already on their street, pulling in to the two car driveway. Their car was parked outside, meaning they were home.

Rattling my knuckles on the door, I awaited someone to open it. From outside I could hear the sound of the door being unlocked, opening up to my mother. Before I could say hello she took me into a hug. I froze in surprise, unsure of what to do. My hands rested on her back, starting to get comfortable with it.

"Your stomach it's-" She paused, knowing exactly what to say but it way too much shock to bring words. The smile on my face was enough to bring tears to her eyes. "Pregnant..."

I nodded. "You're going to be a grandma." When I finished speaking she had pulled me into the house and shut the door. "I'm going to be a mom," I stated the obvious.

She called out to her husband who is also my dad and anticipated to show him this big surprise. "She's pregnant!" The look on my dad's face changed every second, unable to comprehend what was going on and why his daughter was back at his house.

"Where's the lucky gentleman?" He asked, pushing his glasses up the bridge of his nose. They were taking this much better than I thought they would, considering I haven't seen them in months.

"On tour. He's a part of a band." And with that, my dad immediately fell in love with my unknown boyfriend. "I have pictures if you want to see."

In the middle of that sentence, my mother interrupted, "Yes!" My phone was mostly filled with pictures of Awsten and me, or solely Awsten, so it won't take long to find one.

"Here," I said, handing them my phone. It was a picture I originally took for his Instagram but it never ended up making it onto his account, although he did post others I took. It had him laying in a field with a smile that reaching both sides of his face. His purple hair complemented the small yellow flowers he was laying on.

While showing them it, my sister Claire, younger by four years, entered the room. Her eyes lingered on the picture, examining him. "That's Awsten." Our mother, father, and my own head snapped to her. What?

"That's...his name," I said, taking my phone back slowly. "How do you know him?" Clearly, I didn't say his name, as my parents were surprised when she said it.

"I know his mom," she started, "My friend's brother has her as a gym teacher." I probably would've known about Awsten's mom knowing Claire if I visited them more often. "Also, congrats on the kid."

"So Awsten's his name," my mom said, "And how did you meet?" She walked to the dining room table and I followed, pulling out a chair. We all sat around as I, their daughter that came back after months, talk about my lovely boyfriend.

With a smile, I recited how we met from memory. That day at the park and then me bringing him to Otto's place. Us hanging out every Saturday, which quickly turned into every day, then me going on tour with them.

"And when can we see him?" My dad asked, sipping on coffee he made while I was talking. "He's on tour now, yeah?"

"Yeah," I sighed, frowning. "He'll be back early August. We planned to surprise you guys with my pregnancy but I couldn't risk you all getting upset."

They all shrugged, understanding where I was coming from. Now it was just showing off the baby bump to Awsten's parents that I was scared about. I feel like they're going to be fine about it as well, but the fear was still there.

We sat around, conversing about any topic that came into our heads. I missed so many months of events, and now was the time to catch up before Awsten comes around. Turns out the most I missed is that Claire now has a boyfriend and my parents agreed that it would be nice if both Awsten and her boyfriend came over on the same night.

"Bring him as soon as you can. I can't wait," my mom said to me as I stood by the door, ready to leave. "Make sure he's comfortable. I don't want him being awkward around us just because we're your parents."

I laughed, "Thank you, mom." She handed me a container of baked goods she made a few days before, saying that if I come by more often she'll give me more.

On the drive home I got a text from Awsten. In my wonderful state of stupidity, I unlocked my phone while driving. He sent me a picture of himself, clean shaven, with the caption, "I look like a child. Sorry, baby."

When I hit a red light, I took a selfie, sending it to Awsten with the quick caption, "You're cute." 

That night we sent each other pictures of each other until one of us passed out. He was the first to go out while I saved all the pictures he sent me to my phone, creating an album specifically for him. I wonder if he did the same for me.

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