I woke up from my nap by a knock on the door. I had started using my lunch breaks to come home and sleep. I could never sleep at night anymore.
"Coming!" I groaned, wondering who it could be.
I wasn't too surprised when I saw Prue standing there. What surprised me was that she was accompanied by Phoebe, Paige...and my mother.
"Oh my god," I whispered, as Patty immediately burst into tears and hugged me. "Mom?"
"Piper!" Paige squealed.
"What are you guys doing here?" I asked, still in shock. Mom finally released me.
Then it hit me.
"Is...dad here?" I asked, fearing the oncoming feud if he was.
"No, no," Mom said, wiping her tears.
"He doesn't know where you are, or that we do," explained Prue. "I know," she continued. "You must want to kill me."
I looked away from her.
"Uh, hey, how about you guys go inside?" I said to Phoebe and Paige. "I'd like to talk to Mom and Prue."
They ran inside, Phoebe went for the computer, while Paige looked around. I shut the door.
"Let me explain," said Mom. "You have to understand...I've lost three of my daughters. First you, then Prue and now Phoebe. And it's all because of your father."
I took a deep breath, beyond overwhelmed.
"Piper," she continued, "he's not in our lives anymore. He's moved away for his job. I know you are 18 now, but I'd like to ask you to come home."
I tried my best to stay calm. There was no way I could handle this right now. I looked at my watch.
"Look, I have to be at work soon. I was just home for my lunch break," I said.
"Work," mom whispered, tearing up again. "Of course..."
I gave her a confused look.
She gave a small laugh, wiping away more tears.
"You hadn't even finished driving lessons the last time I saw you," she said softly. "Now you have your own place...You're working...You're so grown up."
I stepped forward and hugged her.
"Mom," I said. "I love you so much. But telling me I couldn't be with Leo, well, that was pretty much the only thing you could've done to make me leave like I did."
"I'm so sorry...I didn't know how much he meant to you," she said.
"How could you have known? You didn't know me," I cried. "You couldn't possibly have known what was important to me," I said, not sure who I was blaming for this.
I hugged her again.
"Listen, it's a long drive home. How about you guys go inside and watch a movie or something? My shift will be over in a few hours," I said. "Then Leo and I will take everybody out to dinner."
I guess she was taken aback at me being so responsible, because she didn't say anything.
"Go on in," I said with a smile. "It's no manor, though," I added with a laugh.
"Mom, I'll be in in a few minutes," said Prue. "I want to talk to Piper."
Mom went inside and joined Paige, who already was watching TV.
"Don't get mad at me," she said with a smile. "Mom already knew where you were. She said she has for a while."
"How?"
"I dunno," she said. She hugged me quickly. "Now, get to work, young lady."
I laughed and headed for my car.
On my way to work, I called Leo's cell and left him a message.
"Hey, babe. Listen, don't be surprised when you come home and my entire family has taken over the place," I laughed. "I guess I'll explain this later. Love you, bye."
I came into work with tears in my eyes, still overwhelmed. Instantly, Greg, a guy I worked with, came over to me.
"Piper? You okay?" he asked.
"Yeah," I said with a smile, wiping my tears. "My family just surprised me by showing up at my place."
"That's sweet. They visiting for Christmas?" he asked.
That hadn't entered my mind.
"No. I hope not!" I laughed. "I have a one bedroom place, not big enough for six people."
We laughed, and kept talking about our families while we worked.
My shift was over before I knew it.
"Hello?" I called as I opened the door. I followed the laughter into the kitchen. Leo was home, laughing with my family. I put my stuff on the kitchen table and smiled.
"Well, this is one big happy family," I laughed. "What's going on?"
"We were just catching up," said Prue.
"Everybody hungry?" I asked.
"Yeah!" Paige and Phoebe shouted.
"Well, let's go," said Leo.
As we were all walking out, Paige and I were the last ones out. She had smile on her face bigger than any smile I'd ever seen.
"Well, don't you look happy?" I laughed.
She replied with a hug.
"I missed you," she whispered.
I hugged her back, tight. My eyes burned with tears.
"I missed you, too, kid."
We followed the rest of them outside to the parking lot.
"Can I ride with you and Leo?" Paige asked, still holding my hand.
I looked to Mom. She nodded.
"Yeah," I smiled, and Paige hopped in the back of Leo's car.
During dinner, I discovered that after Prue and Roger broke up and Prue and Phoebe moved back to Wells into their own place.
"So, you and Leo have done well for yourselves," Patty said, beaming.
"Thank you," I said, grinning. "It hasn't been easy."
Patty laughed uneasily, clearly not being able to relate.
Paige and Phoebe were both asleep in the back as we drove back to our apartment.
We pulled into the parking lot next to Patty's car.
"Come on, guys," I said to Phoebe and Paige. "Gotta wake up."
We all gathered to say our goodbyes.
After Prue, Phoebe, and Paige had gotten in the car, I went to say goodbye to Mom.
"Piper, have you thought about what I asked? Will you come home?" she asked.
I looked up and Leo, then back at her.
"Mom, I love you and my sisters so much," I said.
"But you won't come home..." she sighed.
"I was barely sixteen when I left home. We had absolutely nothing," I said. "Now we have jobs, and our own place...We made it, together. And I'm happy."
She nodded her head.
"I'm very proud of you, Piper. I'll miss you not being close to home, but I respect your decision," she said. "We'll have to visit each other often."
"Of course," I said as we hugged.
She turned to leave, but I stopped her.
"Mom... Prue said you knew where I was. Why didn't you...?"
"Your whole life, I told you what to do, over and over. I always assumed I knew what was best for you," she said.
More tears welled up in her eyes. "I told myself, you knew what you were doing. If this would make you happy, then I should just let it run its course. I thought... I thought you'd come home."
She touched my hand.
"And I never did," I sighed.
"Take care of her, Leo," she said with a smile.
One last hug, and she left.
Leo and I walked inside. I would never forget how proud and happy I was that night.
