Tick. Tick. Tick.
That clock is so loud.
Tick. Tick. Tick.
Each passing second I grew more impatient, more nervous. I couldn't listen to any of the voices around me. People called my name but it sounded like it was being swallowed up by distance. Suddenly a few feet became miles. I couldn't shake it. What stood behind that door had the potential to change lives. Not just mine. Four lives were at stake here. Half of me was in "mama bear" instinct, ready to pounce and devour anyone who threatened the well-being of my children. The other half felt like a terrified and fragile girl. I hoped the winning half would be the stronger one.
'What do they want?' I thought. 'Surely this is all about money.'
With a deep breath and the support of Niall and Harry standing right beside me, I opened the door. Two elderly people stood before me, very average looking. I sized them up before even speaking to them. I knew their names but didn't know what they were about. They looked innocent enough but I had too many experiences in my short lifetime to believe that so blindly.
The woman extended her arms out for a hug and I simply offered one hand out for a handshake. Her smile faltered a bit before she accepted it.
"My, how you look like your mother," The woman cooed.
"Really? I think I look more like my father," I replied.
This time the man spoke up, "It's so great to see you. Look at you, all grown up."
"That's what people do. We grow up."
The exchange was forced and awkward. I made sure not to play nice to these strangers. They didn't fool me for a second. The hair on the back of my neck stood the entire time.
Niall's hand pressed against my lower back as he guided me to the kitchen table. Richard and Daisy followed behind and sat directly across from us. Harry took the seat at the end of the table, his eyes never leaving the elderly couple.
Richard broke the awkward silence. "We're Richard and Daisy, although I'm sure you've heard about us before. We're Ariella's grandparents."
Interesting. He's speaking to Niall and Harry instead of me.
"I didn't see you once in the seventeen years I lived with my mom," I challenged him.
"Now, Ariella, before you make this into a screaming battle, you should know that your mom wanted nothing to do with us. She chose her life," Daisy said in a quiet voice. Something about her demeanor told me that she wasn't as quiet and passive as she tried to seem.
"She married a man that destroyed her."
"She chose that life for herself. She is the one who started drinking. Her husband didn't make that choice for her," Daisy argued.
"She drank to forget about life with him. She wasn't a great mother. Hell, she wasn't even a good mother. She was practically a kid herself when she got into a relationship with my step-father. She was your daughter! You owed it to her to protect her, and you couldn't even do that."
Daisy said, "Your mother got knocked up by a man she barely knew and then expected her new boyfriend to pick up the pieces of her life."
I stood up this time and slammed my hands down on the wooden table.
"You two sat back while your own granddaughter endured a life of torture. I don't want to hear about how my mom's mistakes ruined everything. Your ignorance did."
Richard spoke up, "I think that's enough."
"I'm just getting started," I said.
"Please, please stop this. This isn't why we're here at all," Daisy pleaded.
"Then please enlighten us. Tell us why you're here," I said.
I was surprised at myself. It seemed the mama bear instinct in me took over. I realized I loved the feeling of being strong, of standing up for myself and my family.
"I'm not proud of the grandparents that we were to you, Ariella. I know that we can't take that back and we can't change it. We're sorry for not being there. When we got word that you gave birth, we thought that this would be a chance to make things right. We want to be present in the lives of our great-grandchildren," Richard explained.
"And you thought that the right way of doing that was contacting a lawyer before reaching out to us?" Niall asked from beside me.
He grabbed my hand and held it on my thigh. He felt very warm. I saw him physically get frustrated with them.
"We thought that the reaction would be hostile, much like it is right now," Richard answered.
"You're absolutely right, it's hostile. You are a complete stranger that hired an attorney to threaten my family. I'm the father and the head of this house and no one makes decisions without going through my wife or me first," Niall spoke with anger.
He was completely enraged at this point. I squeezed his hand to calm him but it didn't work.
"I'm so sorry. If we knew that going through a lawyer would cause this much trouble, we wouldn't have done it," Daisy begged, "just please hear us out. I'm so sorry. So sorry."
"Mr. William Bauffley brought up the possibility of a custody battle. How do you think you will manage that without being involved in Ariella's life?" Niall asked.
Richard raised his hands to try and get us to calm down. "Whoa, whoa, whoa, Daisy and I never said anything about a custody battle. Mr. Bauffley mentioned that of his own accord and I'm sorry if it sounded threatening. We just want to have a place in the twins' lives."
"Great. We'll take all of this into consideration and schedule another visit. Perhaps you could bring the attorney next time," Harry said.
"And who are you?" Richard asked.
Harry smiled, "I'm Ariella's brother, the uncle."
"Her mother never had another child," Daisy said in a confused tone.
"You know the man she barely knew that knocked her up? The one you referred to earlier? That's my dad."
The silence in the room was so overwhelming that I could hear a pin drop. I was so agitated that I couldn't think about scheduling another visit, but I had to. There was no way that my grandparents would leave us in peace.
"I think that you should leave now. You've put my wife under a lot of stress and it's not good for the babies," Niall said.
"Can we at least see them before we leave?" Daisy asked.
I thought about Gemma taking care of the twins. I wondered if she heard all of this going on. I prayed that she locked the door to their room.
I answered, "I don't think that's the best idea. Whenever you come next time and the attorney is present, you can. I don't feel very safe exposing them to you right now."
Richard sighed. "We flew in just for this weekend but we can make arrangements to stay longer. Would next week work for you?"
I nodded.
"Next week is fine," Niall said, "how 'bout Saturday? Will Mr. Bauffley be available?"
"I'll see to it that he is," Richard answered.
They irritated me. There was something incredibly suspicious about them and I was going to find out. They didn't have probable cause to make a case out of anything. I wondered about the attorney's credibility and exactly who these people were. Was my mom right to stop speaking to her parents? Was she as crazy as everyone made her seem? Was this a lifelong damage that I was just becoming aware of? I wondered. I had a feeling that questions I had never even thought of were going to get answered from this.
They stood up and walked out of the door. I shut it behind me and walked closer to them. I smiled slyly before I spoke.
"If you're thinking of doing something, I should warn you against it. You're going to regret ever contacting that attorney."
- - - - - - - - - - - - -
AUTHOR'S NOTE:
Thank you so much for bearing with me through this long absence. I'm sorry the chapter is so short but there is so much to come. This was the best place for me to leave off. I don't know how many people still keep up with this story, but thank you to the ones who never left... This is dedicated to all of you. You've been so faithful through this long journey with Ariella and Niall. I am going to finish this book and get updates out faster. I'm finally done with my semester at university and now I have the summer to write and update before school starts back in August.
I know I keep saying thank you, but it truly means so much to me that all of you care so much. Thank you for checking up on me and making sure I am okay, and thank you for caring about this story so much. YOU are my motivator to finish.
On a side note, what do you think of Ariella's grandparents? Are you suspicious of them? Let me know your thoughts in the comments...
All my love,
RelentlessChaos