Ada Johnson's P. O. V
The anticipation from last time, I had deduced to be a one time thing but oh no. That appears to be a misunderstanding on my own part since the thought of me meeting my relatives once more leaves me feeling on edge so to say. My aunt and her soon to be husband do appear to be quite lovely people, not just from or short once encounter but more so from the vibe they seemed to emit. Although that does sometimes leave people astray, I can't really bring myself to hate on the old woman that genuinely seems eager and delighted to get to know me, her own niece.
"You ready to go?" Greg's voice reaches me while the man himself situates himself in front of the bathroom mirror, running a hand through his hair to 'perfectly tousle the delicate strands of blond hair,' his words and most definitely not mine.
"If I'm not ready by now, I'm afraid you'll have to drag me kicking and screaming." I answer back while slipping into some shoes. For some reason, I decided to make us both dress up semi casual and by that I mean I made Gregory wear a light blue button up shirt with some jeans while I wore a dress I had brought with me once awhile back to Greg's house and then simply forgot to take back. However, I do have a sinking suspicion that Greg keeps a few articles of my clothing for his personal gain and doesn't make much of an effort to remind me to take the random clothes here and there.
Girlfriend's are known for taking their boyfriend's hoodies but nope, my boyfriend decides to take his girlfriend's dresses.
To each their own, I guess.
"Oh come on Ada, the woman wouldn't hurt a fly let alone do anything to shake you up. She seems really nice," Greg certifies as he comes out of the bathroom while giving me a little twirl. I can't help but to laugh at his antics even when I really want to scold him.
"The woman calls you lovely one time and you're already infatuated with her." I joke as I step towards him, unable to hold myself back from pressing my lips to his in a soft and groan invoking kiss.
"Don't worry Ada. You'll always be my girl," he says with the cheesiest grin known to man followed by a sultry wink, "Please she's not my type. I mean the Mrs. might have been a foxy lady back in her youth and prime but I just don't fly that way."
"What am I going to do with you?" I say with a groan, throwing my head back while Gregory snickers along at his own words like he's made the greatest joke ever.
"You can have your wicked ways with me if you please. I will be completely at your mercy. Tie me up, gag me, spank me. All you'll hear from me is 'yes ma'am.'" If my jaw could have dropped any lower, it would be caressing the cold tiled ground right now as Gregory presses his lips to my frozen self before sauntering out of the room with an extra sway added to his hips.
Someone please do tell me what to do with this not so grown man.
"Let's just go and have some tea. You do like tea and biscuits and other things that go with tea so that's a plus. Just keep focused on that and you'll be fine. This will be a breeze." My pep talk that I give myself is nothing more than utter bullshit but I repeat it to myself a few times before I hear the tell tale sign of an impatient boyfriend yelling at me to get my ass into gear and to start moving.
"I'm coming!" I yell back but twice as loud since Greg chooses to have selective hearing with certain things. Walking down the stairs and over to an awaiting Gregory who holds the door open for me, I send him a quick thanks and then slip easily into the car with the keys I grabbed out of the way. Of course Greg forgot to catch them and was going to leave the house without the car keys but it's like I'm already adapted to all his habits, odd quirks and all, and have managed to work my way around them.
I even confirm my thoughts as Greg closes the door shut behind him but then frowns to himself when he sees the lack of keys in his hand.
I wonder how he thinks I got into his car? Some things are a complete mystery when it comes to this man.
Dangling the keys and rattling them loudly to catch his attention, the man pauses in his steps to go back and sends me a breathtaking smile which I eagerly return. The simplest things make this man beam with delight and I am pretty sure that's one of the things that made me fall in love with him so quick and easily.
The car ride is filled with Gregory's silly antics which I pretend to get annoyed with but honestly, who wouldn't want to erupt into childlike antics the way he messes about and manages to lighten up any situation. I already know he's doing it for my sake and to lessen the raging nerves I've got going on in my stomach even though my brain is telling me I have nothing to logically worry about.
If I don't like the people just cut them out of your life. It's not like anything will change. That's what one part of my brain tells me while my gut responds with a twisting pang that makes me want to run to the nearest toilet.
The address leads us to a nice typical suburban locality that looks like something out of a movie with kids playing around with each other on the garden and adults lounging around on chairs with a beer in hand and trying to get a tan. The sight makes me snort since I think of my own dingy building that has barely any sort of lights unless you count the half working fluorescent ones. The only one you'll catch trying to get a tan underneath those ugly lights are the cockroaches coming out for their nightly scavenges.
"This is it." Gregory says as we both slowly make our way out of the car once it's parked in the driveway. The house more of a bungalow with creepers running up it and various flowers giving a colourful few to the already cutely decorated garden. The bungalow reminding me that of Marjorie and how maybe my aunt has a green thumb just like my boyfriend's grandmother.
Knocking on the glass paned door, it feels like my aunt has been hovering around the area every few moments since not even three seconds go by before the door is swung open and the woman stands in front of me with a lively smile donned in a light blue dress with her hair nicely curled. The sight brings a smile to my face and when she pulls me into a hug, I reciprocate it easily and mirror the toothy grin she gives me before pulling Greg into a tight hug as well.
"Oh I'm so glad you both could make it." She says eagerly, side stepping out of the way so that we can enter while calling out to her fiancé.
"I wouldn't have missed such an opportunity." I say with a pleasant smile although it's sort of a white lie but I can't tell that to her. She'd probably break down into tears.
"You have a lovely home Jane." Greg says politely to which my aunt gushes out a 'thank you' just as a stumbling Peter makes his way towards us.
"Hello you two! It's great to see you. Please, this way." I can't help but to feel rather warm and comforted inside. My aunt, and well by extension, my uncle, seem like genuinely nice people which I managed to deduce from the get go and even though I chided myself and said I wouldn't trust anyone so easily, I'm feeling my walls cracking bit by bit with each sip of tea and each topic of conversation as Jane smiles at me in between words and countless cookies and cakes being fed to Greg and I.
It's mainly small talk that continues on from our previous meeting which was cut short but it feels like a safe space nonetheless. Our conversations go from how Greg and I are doing together to how we work together and then to what my aunt and uncle do etc. Each little tidbit giving me a world of information into the character that my maternal aunt is.
The casualness in the conversation lapses for a moment after I've eaten my fifth biscuit while Gregory munches on his eighth home made biscuit. The man probably will still have abs of steel while my dress currently bulges at my stomach after I've eaten so many sugary sweets.
"I don't mean to put a dent in the air but um," Jane pauses for a second, glancing at Peter who nods in encouragement while I smile politely at her as well, "Would you like to see pictures of your parents? I took out a few in case you'd want to." Her words drift off into silence while I take in a deep breath.
Of course, I expected this. We are family after all and she would logically ask me if I wanted to see the people who had a part in creating me and bringing me into this world.
Gregory grabs a hold of my hand and squeezes it gently, stopping his munching of the biscuit that now resides on the edge of his saucer.
"I'd love to." I find myself saying gently, surprising myself and probably Gregory since I've started putting up a front about not really caring about the intricacies of everything.
"Are you by any chance interested in cars Gregory? I've gotten ahold of this classic vintage automobile from a friend who was stupidly about to dump it." Peter suddenly chimes in to which Greg stands up automatically, nodding his head in barely hidden intrigue.
Jane and I smile knowingly at each other, recognising the subtle signal that both of the men are giving the two of us some alone time since it's a personal topic. Jane gets up to get the pictures while I settle myself comfortably on the couch, assuring Greg that I'll be fine as he heads to the garage with Peter. By the time Jane comes back, she's holding a thick leather bound photograph album with a timid expression on her face.
I scoot to the side and brace myself as she sits besides me and slowly opens up the gigantic book, flipping through endless pictures before she stops at one page and glances at me. I look from her to the picture she has her finger on as she begins softly.
"These are your parents. This was taken a few months before you were born."
The grainy picture made it hard to make out what was what but once I peered ya the image closely, the sight had my mouth turning dry. Two people stare back at me with beaming smiles on their faces. My mother looking alike to her sister and more so me. The same heart shaped face, green eyes that I can just barely make out with pitch black hair in neat curls landing around her shoulders. The smile on her face showing off the immense happiness she feels while the person besides her, my father, smiles even more so. His stature taller than my mother by a foot as he stands next to her with his arms around her and hand resting on her stomach. Tanned skin, dark eyes and brownish almost black hair cropped in a buzz cut. The smile showing off his pearly whites and two dimples that I never inherited.
"Wow." I whisper softly, my fingers raising up to brush over the picture of the couple and then landing on my mother's bulging stomach that holds me. The feeling is foreign but tugs at my heartstrings, nonetheless, something akin to pure awe taking over me.
"They were lovely people. Your mother used to work at a bakery not too far from here. She was really good at baking which I learned from her. I can give you her recipes if you'd like," I find myself nodding my head immediately, a desperation taking over me to have something, some tie to bind us together, "Your father on the other hand was a lawyer."
Jane's words leave me stunned as I stare back at her with my mouth gaping, her head nodding with a subtle laugh as she loops our arms together while I settle closer to her. "I didn't even think-," my words trail off as she nods at me.
"He was a really great lawyer even at a young age. Well, he was a good lawyer for others but his own state of affairs weren't that amazing which is why..." This time she trails off to which I nod now, picking up where she left off.
"I guess he didn't think anything like that could happen to them." I mutter slowly as she sighs next to me.
"I want you to know that I really did try. As soon as I had heard what happened, I tried everything to find you and get to you. The adoption agency was no help and it was like I was back at square one. I collected all of your parents belongings and put them in a storage unit for you. I knew I'd find you one day but then I just got stuck. Even if I did find you, what sane person would give a child over to an abusive household. I admit I'm not the brightest since it took me so long to come to a realisation but I took that as the strength to leave so that once I come into your life, you're surrounded by nothing but the positivity and affection that you deserve."
It must be a sight to see. The woman besides me getting emotional and ending up a blubbering mess by the end while I start sniffling at the sincerity that resounds through each word that Jane speaks.
By the time Gregory and Peter come back inside, Jane and I are snuggling and wiping our tears on multiple tissues trying to keep our tears at bay while she points at different pictures and describes the story behind each one. Some she doesn't know herself since they were taking during the year my mother and her had their falling out but the rest full of different stories.
Greg purposely catches my eyes, trying to ask me discreetly if I'm okay but I nod my head with a teary smile to assure him.
These are nothing but happy tears.
——————-
AN: Soooo my excuse is that I'm a dumb bitch who didn't realise how much time passed 😔. Also classes are starting again and it's just wow but the last chapter should be up sooner. Spam me with messages if I don't update.
Question: The silliest thing you've ever believed as a child?
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