Twenty minutes later, I shuffled down the stairs only to be met with two very conflicting scenes.
On one hand, Eleanor is splayed out at the dining room table, paperwork strewn about all around her laptop in a half circle, dressed immaculately in perfect business casual. It's odd not seeing her in a pencil skirt and pumps, but she still manages to pull herself together flawlessly. On vacation, no less.
On the other hand, you had Anne and Gemma in the kitchen, dressed in adorably cheesy holiday sweaters and casual PJ bottoms that barely covered their sockless feet, who were pulling out ingredients to commence what I can only assume will be baking cookies. Their outfits make me feel so much better about my ratty old college hoodie and ripped leggings.
Nick and Harry were sitting at the kitchen island across from Anne and Gemma, chatting easily over the gigantic spread of eggs, bacon, and pancakes. Both men look almost like twins, adorning simple black hooded sweatshirts and jeans. Nick has already started on his pancakes, while Harry is still shoveling the eggs in his mouth slowly, savoring every bite as he chews deliberately.
I couldn't help but pause to inhale, letting the homey scent of maple syrup fill my lungs, my stomach rumbling loudly in response, which unexpectedly announced my presence to the rest of the room. Everyone turns to look at me, while Harry just smirks.
"Mornin' Al!" he chimes gleefully. I can't help but give him a condescending smile as I close the distance, slipping up onto the barstool next to him. "Weather for today?"
I groan, looking around at the rest of the room and their confused, yet expectant faces. "Uh...cold?"
"Oh, come on! You can do better than that," he remarks, nudging my ribs with his bony elbow before shoving the rest of his eggs into his mouth.
"Fine," I groan, whining slightly like a torrid teenager. "Overcast today, high of sixty. Chance of flurries around midnight. That better?" I smirk. I'm pretty proud of myself for having checked it before coming downstairs.
"Oh, come on!!" he whines, matching my tone from earlier. "Do the voice!" He drops his fork onto his plate, the clatter startling everyone as they watch our exchange.
"No!"
I could feel my cheeks heating up, knowing everyone is watching us now in bewildered amusement. This was our inside joke, and judging by their faces, I'm not sure that everyone else got it.
"Come ooooooooon," he begged, slowly reaching up and starting to poke me in the side repeatedly until I had to slap his hands away. "You always do the voice."
He got one more poke in for good measure.
"Harold, don't be obnoxious," Eleanor chimes in, but her voice was distant. You could tell she was not paying attention. Harry ignored her.
"What voice?" Gemma asks, looking at both of us in confusion. I just sighed.
"Her weatherman voice," Harry chimes again, a huge smile on his cheeks, showing off those dimples of his that were quickly becoming my favorite feature. Come to think of it, his smile in general made me happy, and I had been seeing a lot more of it lately. He pokes me again with a smile. "Do it."
"I'm not doing it..." I reply, trying my hardest not to smile. It was impossible with Harry, though. He was just so damn adorable with that face he made, the half smirk full of mischief that he was always trying to half hide, but always failed. It got me every time.
"Dooooooo ittttttttttttt," he sings lowly, drawing out the vowels and poking me again. I slap away his hand again before screwing my face into an expression of mock annoyance. His smile didn't fade for one second, expecting me to acquiesce.
"Fine!" I groaned as I sat up straight, rolling my shoulders back and popping my neck as I prepared myself for our morning ritual, even if it would embarrass me in front of his family.
"You're getting ready," he exclaims, shocked that I actually gave in. "Really? Reaaaally!?" he clapped his hands together like a toddler getting birthday cake.
I huff. "Yes, just give me a minute." I sigh again, taking a deep breath before getting ready. "Goooood morning, folks! Todaaaaay's forecaaaaast is cloudyyyy, with a high of sixty. But watch out! Flurrrrrries will be coming in around midnight! Pack your snowshoes and winter coats!"
I blush furiously after doing it, Harry nearly bouncing in his chair as he beamed at me. Nick just snickered, while Anne and Gemma just looked at both of us curiously and then each other with confused smiles. Anne shook her head as she grabbed the peanut butter and baking powder.
"Olivia, would you like some breakfast?" Anne asked. "We've got eggs, pancakes obviously -- " she chuckled, watching her son push his empty egg plate away before pulling his plate of pancakes closer greedily, slapping some butter on before pouring an obscene amount of syrup on them. "We have -- "
"Harry!" Eleanor squeals, scolding him from afar as she looks up from her glasses. He ducks his head, knowing he's in trouble, but not sure what for yet. What could he have possibly have done now? He hadn't even left the house yet. "What are you doing?"
Everyone looks at him, while he just looks down at his plate of food perplexed.
"Uh -- I'm eating breakfast?" he questions, looking over his shoulder at her again.
"You already had eggs," she scowls sharply, that is, until she catches Anne's eyes. "Darling, you know you can't have carbs," she laughs as if he's just being silly. "It'll set back your entire training regimen. I'm just looking out for you baby."
Harry looks from Eleanor to his mother, who at this point just blinks back in shock before having to turn away from the scene to grab a bowl, probably so she didn't say what was really on her mind. Nick made an irritated noise in the back of his throat, but said nothing; and Gemma, she just shook her head at him. Harry looks down longingly at his pancakes before looking back at Eleanor, her gaze steadily on his. My stomach grumbles again and he set his eyes on me, a hint of sadness in his green orbs.
"Here you go, Livvy," he offers, nudging his plate in front of me. "You need this more than me," he finishes, mumbling an "apparently" under his breath as a slight addendum.
"Are you s-sure? I mean...I can just..." I offer.
"Please," he interrupts, holding his hands up. "Eleanor is right, n-no carbs for me." He forced a smile, and I give him a sympathetic look before picking up my fork and taking a bite. I tried not to moan at the taste, but they were delicious, prompting another sad sigh from Harry.
"Dude, you're fucking whipped," Nick finally mutters under his breath to Harry.
Harry pushed his shoulder in response before standing up. "We should get going..."
"What are you boys doing today?" Anne asked, pre-heating the oven before turning back to them and wiping her hands on the dish towel.
They both shrug, and I can't help but notice just how much they mirror each other, each of them with matching clothes and hands in their pockets, similar facial expressions. If you didn't know it, you would think they were brothers. Anne seems to notice this too, as she just shakes her head.
"Be good," she simply says, knowing from their expressions they weren't going to tell her. Boy secrets, or something.
"We will. Bye Mum," he smiles, leaning over the island to kiss her on the cheek before they head for the door. Before they do, though, Harry stops and whispers something to Nick before going over to Eleanor.
Once there, he leaned down next to her, whispering a few nothings into her ear. I couldn't help but watch out of the corner of my eye, trying my best not to get involved, but I can't help it. They're whispering so it's almost impossible to hear what he was saying to her, but I made a few words out, like "be good" and "our family now." Eleanor just rolled her eyes, arms crossing over her chest before she says something heated back to him.
He breathes out, tilting his head to the side and I could tell that something in his face had changed, something I couldn't quite decipher. It was like his face softened and his eyes held their own gravitational pull. I hear him utter one more word, and one word only -- "please" -- and Eleanor's face yields to a look I've never seen before. She sighs and gives him a curt nod, where he smiles in return and stands up, giving her a soft peck on the cheek on the way to his feet.
Did he just charm her into doing something? That might be a first.
I turn back to my plate quickly, shoving the last of my pancakes in my mouth so they don't catch me watching them as they break apart. As I turn, my eyes catch Anne's, who is watching me curiously. All I can do is blush, ducking my head in embarrassment as I take my plate and bring it over to the sink to rinse it before putting it in the dishwasher.
"Have fun ladies," Harry chimes. I don't even bother looking over my shoulder at him, feeling like I've already been caught looking at him by his mom enough as it is. "I expect piles of cookies when I get back!"
"Oh, yeah right..." Anne chuckled, looking at her daughter with a smile. Harry returned a hearty laugh, it echoing as he disappeared, punctuating his and Nick's departure. "Gemma, hand me the flour there. We'd better get to work if we're gonna have piles of cookies when he gets back," she chuckled. But there's something in her voice that says she'd love nothing more than to make those piles of cookies for him.
I can't blame her.
--
Author's Note:
Shortish chapter. Do you like them longer or shorter?
Lots of action coming up! ;)
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