"Av! Hurry up, we're leaving in ten minutes!"
"I'm coming!"
I zipped up my duffel bag that was carrying all the items I would need to survive the next few days. Zendaya and I were heading home to Plainview for Thanksgiving and although we would only be there until Sunday, I was already dreading the long weekend. Don't get me wrong, I missed my family and my niece but family meant relatives- and relatives meant Karley.
Thinking of her, I was reminded of the conversation I had on the phone with my mom this morning. Be nice, Avri. She's your cousin, Avri. Don't ruin Thanksgiving dinner, Avri. I scoffed at the last one, still in disbelief that my mom was banking on me to be the one who would ruin Thanksgiving. Karley is the one that betrayed me. The conversation and thoughts of Karley left a bitter taste in my mouth and I scrunched my nose, slinging the strap of my bag over my shoulder. I glanced around my room one more time before picking up my drawing notebook and walking out of my bedroom.
Shutting my bedroom door behind me, I walked into the living room and found Zen waiting on the couch in a pair of jeans and a blue hoodie. This was probably the most casual I was going to see her, she always dressed down when visiting home. I have to be plain like Plainview, were her exact words.
"You ready to go home?" I ask her as I approach, raising my eyebrow at her when she frowns.
"As ready as I'll ever be. You know I hate going back there." She pouts and I nod. I do know, she's always hated visiting for the holidays. She couldn't wait to get out of there when she graduated high school so the fact she has to return twice a year? Terrible for her.
"Yeah I remember. But hey! At least you get a heated pool and fancy dinners." I remind her of her family's wealth and she rolls her eyes.
"True. I don't understand why my parents don't permanently move out here to one of the complexes they own." She comments then glances down at her phone when it vibrates. "Speaking of my parents, the car my dad sent for us is here so let's head down."
"We don't have to drive ourselves this year?"
"Nope! You and I get to have quality time together in the back depending on how heavy traffic is." She wiggles her eyebrows and I laugh before following her to the front door. Zendaya reaches for the door handle, pulling it open only for to stop abruptly. "Shit! You scared me."
I peek around Zen's shoulder, a smile immediately overtaking my face. "Harry?" I move around Zen and she steps back to let Harry step through the doorway. "What are you doing here?"
As he takes a step into the doorway, I take in his appearance to see he's wearing a tan jacket over a black sweatshirt. His legs were covered in his usual black jeans but today, he traded his usual boots for old school vans. I glance up to meet his green eyes, smiling questioningly at him when he gives me a sheepish grin. "I wanted to stop by and say bye."
I blinked a few times at him, surprised he had gone out of his way to stop here before we left. I had told him early this morning what time we were heading out before he left for his own apartment. "I thought we said bye last night?"
He rocks back on his heels, hands tucked into the pockets of his jacket as he sucks his lip into his mouth before letting it roll back into place. "I guess I wanted to say bye again?" He shrugs, his increasingly pink cheeks showing his embarrassment. "Are you leaving right now?"
"We are," Zen answers for me and I look over at her, suddenly remembering her presence. "You want to walk us down and then give your girl a proper goodbye?" She says teasingly before nudging Harry's shoulder playfully as she passes him on her way out. "Come on kids, we have to get to the car. Walk and talk. Or kiss and talk. Whichever."
My face reddens at Zen's teasing and Harry steps back out while I close the door behind us. Zen walks ahead of us and Harry falls into step beside me. I glance at him out of the corner of my eye, seeing his head cast down as he walks. Something about him showing up here to say goodbye again both lifts my mood, and worsens it. He makes me not want to leave even more.
"You ready to go home?" He asks on our way downstairs, raising his eyebrow at me in question. I expressed how I felt last night but he had left this morning just before I received the call from my mom.
"I guess," I shrug, frowning slightly when I'm reminded of the circumstances I will be in later. "I'm hoping It won't be as bad as I'm anticipating."
"I'm sure it won't. And if it is, you can always call me." He nudges my arm and I glance up at him to see him smirking down at me. "We can be miserable on the phone together."
"Sounds fun."
He chuckles, and too quickly we've reached the lobby of our complex. Through the front doors I see the black car awaiting us, but I'm surprised to see Liam sitting on one of the couches. Zen halts mid stride, a gasp only audible to Harry and I leaving her mouth. I try to hold back my grin but it's hard when Liam stands and meets Zen to wrap his arms around her. She physically melts into him.
"Did he come with you?" I ask quietly and Harry nods, his own grin on his face.
"Yeah. He's crazy about her, so of course he wanted to see her before we headed back home too."
"And what's your excuse?" I let it slip before I can stop it and immediately, Harry's gaze cuts to mine. His smile fades and I brace myself for the moment he pulls away from me. But, it doesn't come. Harry holds my gaze, a serious and thoughtful expression on his face that makes it hard to predict what his next words will be.
"That I'll miss you. Probably a crazy amount." He admits, his hand lifting to tuck a loose strand from my bun behind my ear. My heart pumps harder in my chest, and despite my hands being covered in gloves, they break out into a sweat.
"I'm sure you'll be okay." I say softly, playfully nudging his chest but he catches my hand and pulls me abruptly against his warm body. I feel his heat through my coat and the sudden warmth that surrounds me when he wraps me in a hug can only be described as heartening.
"Just shut up and say you'll miss me like crazy too." He mumbles into my hair and I squeeze his waist, tightening my hold on him.
"I'll miss you like crazy too." I say into his chest, though it comes out muffled. The only indication that he heard me is the small smile adorning his lips when he pulls back to look at me. "But it's only five days. I think we'll survive."
"This will be the ultimate test." He jokes and Zen calls me over, letting me know it's time to leave. "Shit, this is hard." He grumbles and I laugh lightly.
"It will be okay." I tell him reassuringly, pulling him outside with me. We stop next to the car and our driver takes my bag from me to place it in the trunk. He closes it, walking around to where we stand and opening the back door for Zen and I. She turns to hug Liam, longer than usual then gives Harry a quick one before turning to climb into the back. I look up at Harry, a knot forming in my stomach knowing I needed to say bye. It was only five days, I kept reminding myself. The space may be good for us.
"Well, I'll see you when we get back." I comment, moving to give him a hug that feels too quick. I step back, fully expecting him to release me but he surprises me when he grabs the back of my neck and brings my face to his. My eyes widen, cheeks heating because I know we have a small audience but Harry dismisses those thoughts when his hands move to cup my face in his hands. He's gentle as he holds me there, green eyes holding my gaze in a way that makes my chest tighten with a strong emotion that I'm too scared to dwell on. He pecks my nose and the action is so unexpected and unlike him, my mouth parts in surprise. He kisses me then, a long sweet touch of his lips that has me questioning everything he has ever said about relationships.
He pulls back then, his thumbs brushing my cheeks before he releases me entirely and steps back. His hands are shoved back into his pockets and he looks almost shy when he looks at me. Shy and...confused. "I'll see you after the break. Happy Thanksgiving, Avriella."
"Happy Thanksgiving." It comes out breathless and I blink a few times, moving to hug Liam quickly and slipping into the backseat. Our driver closes the door and I'm still staring at Harry through the window, up until the car pulls away from the curb and he's no longer in site.
"Whew," Zen whistles, and I feel like I'm drunk off Harry. "Girl, what is going on with you two?"
I sigh loudly and let myself collapse against the seat, leaning my head back as I stare at the ceiling. I'm so fucked. "I have no Idea. It's...complicated."
"Well, you want to blast some Avril Lavigne to get our minds off boys?" She asks and I grin, a burst of laughter leaving my mouth when I look over to see her holding Avril's very first album 'Let go'. We used to play it often in middle school and seeing it brings back nostalgic memories.
"Oh, hell yeah."
She grins and leans over to slap the CD over our driver's shoulder. He looks down at the CD case briefly, raising his eyebrow at Zen through the rearview mirror. "Marvin, play 'Complicated' and turn it up."
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An hour later, I'm stepping through the front door of my childhood home. I wipe the snow off from the bottom of my boots on the mat by the front door, the smell of pumpkin spice immediately hitting my nostrils. Without looking, I know my mom lit one of her favorite scented candles since that's what our home always smelled like during this season. By next month, it will smell like freshly made gingerbread cookies.
I look around the front room to see it's empty and drop my duffel bag next to the wall while I remove my coat and scarf. "Mom? Dad? I'm home!" I shout, and then- I hear my mom squeal and footsteps quickly coming down the stairs. I'm grinning before she even rounds the corner but when she does, a feeling of homesickness slams into me so hard tears sting the back of my eyes. I don't stop to wonder why I'm feeling home sick when I'm home, but the urge to hug my mom is strong that I meet her half way and throw my arms around her neck. I bury my face into her shoulder like I did as a child and inhale her scent, feeling a comfort I haven't felt in months. My bitter feelings over our phone conversation earlier have been long forgotten.
"My baby," she coos and kisses the side of my head. "You've gotten taller." She says, running her hand over my back. Her and I have always been the same height, but I do notice I stand maybe an inch taller now. "Have you been stretching a lot?" She asks jokingly and I laugh, pulling back to look at her. Her hair was a light brown, but there were strands of silver that hadn't been there before I left for school. Her green eyes are bright, and the lines around the mouth I inherited from her are noticeable as she smiles.
"No, mom, I haven't been stretching at all." I laugh and move to wrap an arm around her back, leaning my head on her shoulder when she moves to turn us towards the kitchen. "I've been eating, sleeping, going to school, working, and watching tv," and having a lot of sex. "That's about it."
"Well, continue doing it. Us women in our family could use more height." She nudges me and wraps her arm around my shoulder. "Did Zendaya and you have a smooth trip here?"
"Yes, we blasted music the entire way. Our driver Marvin looked so happy to be done with us when he dropped me off."
"That poor man," she laughs and I grin, not realizing how much I missed it until I was hearing it again. "I remember how much of a handful you two were as kids. Always up to something."
"Zendaya brings it out of me."
"As you bring it out of her." She smacks my butt before releasing me entirely and walking behind the stove. "Are you hungry? It's almost lunch time."
"A little." I look around, noticing how quiet the house Is and meet my mom's gaze in confusion. "Where's dad?"
"He went to get some pies for tonight with your brother. I told them to go yesterday, but you know how they are." She rolled her eyes and it was like looking into a mirror when she made that face.
"I do know."
"Ellie is upstairs, napping. Renee got called into a meeting."
"On Thanksgiving?" I ask incredibly and she nods, grabbing slices of bread along with turkey slices and mayonnaise.
"Yes. You know how being a regional manager can be." She shook her head and the sound of crying interrupted us. My mom dropped the butter knife in her hand and moved to walk around the counter but I held a hand out to stop her.
"It's okay, I'll go get her."
"You sure?"
"Yeah, I want to see my niece." I say truthfully and she nods, going back to making sandwiches as I head towards the steps of the stairs. I jog my way up, going straight for my brother's old room, knowing that whenever they visited that was where him and Renee stayed. I pushed the cracked door open when I reach it, peeking my head in to see the crib at the corner of the room. The blonde curls stand out against the pink blanket and when my eyes meet hers, the crying instantly stops that its almost comical.
"Ellie." I coo and she makes a gasp sound, moving to stand up in her crib. She holds the gate of the crib, her head peeking out from the top and I can't get over how much she grew. How much I've missed of her life. Emotion grips my throat, but I swallow it down and walk over to her. When I reach her crib, she lifts her arms, opening and closing her hands to indicate her desire to be held. I reach for her and pick her up, tucking an arm under her bottom when I bring her to my chest. She wraps her arms around my neck and lays her head on my shoulder.
"Aye." She mumbles her nickname for me, her inability to pronounce the letter 'v' still present. I smile softly, kissing her head and rubbing her back with my free hand.
"Hi baby. I missed you."
"Mith you."
"Are you still tired?"
"No, I want cookie."
"I don't know about that, we'll need to ask grandma." At that, she lifts her head and blinks her tired eyes at me. "You don't like that?"
"Gamma said no." She scrunched her nose, waiving her finger around to imitate my mom and a laugh bursts out of me.
"Okay, kid. Tell you what, I'll sneak you a cookie later but you have to keep it a secret. Okay?"
"Otay." She agrees immediately, tired eyes now suddenly wide.
"Do you know what a secret is?"
"Secwet?" She tries to pronounce it and I nod. "Noooooooo."
"It means, you have to 'shh'," I put a finger to my mouth and she mimics me. "You can't tell mommy, or daddy, or gamma. No one except me." I point to myself and she points to me too. "Okay?"
"Otay, Aye. Secwet."
"Yes, girl." I give her a high five and turn to head for the door. "Now, let's go downstairs to bug gamma."
She tries to talk to me in broken sentences and I understand most of what she says, but some words I can't comprehend. I agree, and comment to show I'm listening but when we walk into the kitchen, my attention is on my dad when I see him standing by the sink next to my mom. "Dad!"
I walk over to him, giving him a one-armed hug with Ellie in my other. He wraps me in both arms and Ellie makes us both laugh when she puts arms around the both of us, padding us with her hands. I pull back, looking up at my dad to see the crinkles around his blue eyes and beard he'd grown.
"Wow, dad. Lookin' like a bum these days huh?" I joked, poking his jaw covered in gray hair.
"Your mother loves it, thank you very much." I scowled at the reference as he wiggles his eyebrows and fake a gag.
"Gross. Please stop." I grumble and he laughs.
"Happy you're home, sweetheart." He kisses my head and then Ellie squeals and is kicking her legs, and I know without looking that my brother has entered the kitchen.
"Daddy!" Ellie shouts, confirming my thoughts and I look over to see my brother, Andrew, walking into the kitchen carrying grocery bags. His blonde hair peeks out of his beanie but he smiles when he sees me, dropping the bags on the table before crossing the kitchen to give me a hug and kiss his daughter.
"Hi precious," he runs his hand over Ellie's hair. "Hi sis. How you been?"
"I've been good. Happy to be home with you guys." I say, hugging Ellie and kissing her on the cheek. She clutches loose strands of my hair in her hands and becomes distracted with the curls.
"We're happy you're home too. It's all mom and dad have talked about the past few days."
"You exaggerate," My mom chimes in, pausing to take a sip of her wine my dad had poured her. "We're just excited she's here for the weekend. Your aunts and uncles are excited to see you too."
At the mention of my relatives, my excitement lessens when I know Karley is in that mix. I'm not excited to see her at all, and I keep wondering if there is a way out of this dinner with her. Maybe we can sit her at the kids' table.
"Can't wait to see them." I say halfheartedly, and the same feeling of dread I felt earlier fills me. It stays with me through out the day while we're prepping dinner in the kitchen together and even when I'm playing with Ellie to distract myself. It isn't until later on when I'm returning to the front room after changing into the tan sweater dress I bought, that I understand the apprehension I've had all day.
There, in my living room and hugging my dad, is Karley.
And just a few feet away, holding my niece in his arms, is Zack.
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Hi guys! Another update :)
I appreciate everyone's comments from the last chapter and the welcome back! I'm so excited to continue on with this story. I know I have other stories I still need to update, BUT I've focused on how I'm going to continue this story and how it will end. So, I'm going to complete this one first before continuing the others.
I'm also looking to read some stories on here, preferably free, so if you have any suggestions please let me know! I love romance, suspense, thriller, mystery etc. Or all mixed in one ;) it also does not need to be fan fic! I love regular fiction too so leave me a comment if you know any :)
Thanks for reading!