My Aunt May's house was exactly the way I remembered it - the same red painted front door, the same pictures in the hallway, the same wobbly chairs around the dining table. I was sitting on one of the wobbly chairs watching as Curtis demolished his second brownie. My hand itched to grab the plate and hide it away. Kim just smirked at me from across the table as she took gulp after gulp out of her large wine glass. Mine lay untouched in front of me.
"He has your eyes."
My Aunt's gaze hadn't left Curtis since we had entered the house. She had commented on his nose, his hair and now she was on to his eyes. I just kept the fake smile plastered on my face, and continued to watch Curtis along with everyone else. At least his unannounced arrival had taken all the heat away from me. I was grateful.
"Are you alright sweetie? Do you want another brownie? Milk? Anything?"
Curtis looked to me for approval, he had chocolate crumbs all over his shirt and a huge grin on his face. Briefly, I recalled the night that Dan had come home to find Curtis and I making brownies. He had not been happy.
"No, no," I gave Curtis a stern look as he reached for another brownie, "I think we've had enough fatty food today, don't you Curtis?"
"Yes Mommy." I hated to be the one responsible for wiping the smile from his face; but it was necessary. He was a handful when he was hyper.
"Surely he can have one more-"
"No," I interrupted, "Why don't you go get yourself a glass of water honey? And then we can get you into your pj's?"
"Yes Mommy." He jumped down from the wobbly chair and pushed it back under the table before walking through to the kitchen. I released the breath I hadn't even known I'd been holding.
"I can go help him-"
"No," I finally took a sip of my wine, "He can get it himself. He's a big boy."
"He's only four and a half-"
"What the fuck happened to you?" Kim interrupted her Mom with a drunken slur. I had forgotten how much of a lightweight she was. It was embarrassing.
"I don't get what you mean?"
"No sugar. High heels. Fancy handbags. Letting your four year old fend for himself-"
"Are you implying that I can't look after my own child?"
"No, but-"
"..because that boy is my whole world."
"A whole world that you didn't even think to share with your family."
"My family is Curtis," I snapped, "And Dan."
"Dan who won't even be gracing us with his presence?" My Aunt reached out to put a calming hand on Kim's arm, but she continued to stare me down.
"He's really sorry. He's a busy man."
"Too busy to accompany his fiancée on a trip to see the family she has avoided for almost five years?"
I pushed away from the table. My hands shook as I placed them on the back of my chair. Curtis looked around in confusion as he re-entered the room clutching his glass of water in his hand. He wasn't used to raised voices, or adults who drank a lot. Without a word I walked towards him and scooped him into my arms. He put his free arm around my neck. He always seemed to be comforting me, when it was me who should be comforting him.
"You don't know what you're talking about," I spoke quietly, "Dan is a brilliant fiancée, a brilliant step-father and everything I have ever wanted."
"We love Dan," Curtis echoed almost robotically. I gave him a tight squeeze of thanks.
"Grace I - "
"I'll speak to you in the morning when you don't have a bottle of wine in your body."
"Night Aunt May," I added before turning swiftly and exiting the room. Only when the door slammed closed behind me did I pause for a moment and lean against the wall in the hallway. My heart was hammering wildly in my chest. I wasn't used to being around people for a long period of time. I wasn't used to being questioned or making small talk. I lived a pretty isolated life in New York, and that was the way I liked it.
All I wanted in that moment was to sink to the floor in the hallway and cry. Instead, I pulled Curtis closer to my chest and inhaled his familiar scent. He was familiar.
"Mommy, do you-"
His voice stopped abruptly as the front door slammed open. Without any conscious thought I placed Curtis on the floor behind me and turned to face the door, my fists raised. I hadn't thrown a punch in years, but La Push seemed to bring out the old fighting spirit that used to be so rife within me.
I lost the ability to think clearly as two men staggered into the house. My eyes narrowed in on the one familiar face.
"Gracey?"
His voice washed right over me. He looked so different; he was huge, and had muscles that he had never had before. He had dark circles under his eyes and had gotten rid of his long hair. What the hell had happened to him?
"Gracey?" He repeated, his voice disbelieving, "Is that really you?"
"I thought you were in Chicago?" I had never heard my voice sounding so small.
"Things didn't work out so well there," he shrugged his shoulders and went to take a step towards me, his arms out as if to grab me in a tight hug.
"No Embry," I shook my head and took a step back, almost stepping on Curtis in the process, "You're not supposed to be here. She promised you wouldn't be here."
I stiffened as the door behind me opened. Kim muttered 'shit' under her breath, and I flinched away as she reached out to touch my shoulder. She had lied to me. I couldn't stand liars; she knew that.
"What the fuck Kim?" I whirled on her, my controlled act slowly crumbling, "You promised he wouldn't be here."
"He's your brother Grace. He's also one of my fiancée's best friends, he had to come to the wedding."
"You fucking lied to me!"
"You wouldn't have come to the wedding otherwise, it was enough of a struggle getting you here as it was."
"I shouldn't have come here," I shook my head from side to side, "This was a gigantic mistake. I don't even know why I agreed to this."
"Grace-"
"You know what he did," I hissed, "You're the only one who knows what he did."
"He's still your brother. You have to forgive him at some point, it was an accident."
"Gracey; that was five years ago."
"Don't you dare talk to me! You're supposed to be in Chicago! You're supposed to be-"
"Mommy?" Curtis's voice was frantic, "Mommy? I'm scared."
Shit. I was scaring him; the one thing I always strived not to do. I had been in La Push all of five minutes and everything was already going to shit.
"It's going to be fine," I murmured as I stroked Curtis's hair. Everything was going to be fine. I was going to go to bed, and then I was getting the hell out of La Push with Curtis before anybody else woke up in the morning. It had been the worst decision ever to return to Crazytown.
"What did he call you?" Embry's eyes were flickering between Curtis and I. He seemed to be noticing the same things that my Aunt May had been mentioning earlier - the same eyes, the same crooked nose, the same determination. I ignored Embry as I continued to mumble soothing words in Curtis's ear. He must have been so damn tired.
"Is he your son?"
Ignoring Embry my eyes registered Jared's presence in the hallway. It still baffled me that he had noticed Kim when I left town; he had been nothing but a fantasy of hers, and I still wondered why he had drastically changed his mind. Jared Thail was not the type of person who hung around with Kim and me. I had despised Jared Thail for a long time. Kim had promised me that he had changed, but she had promised a lot of things that I was beginning to discover were complete bullshit.
"I'm an uncle?" Embry was still talking, clearly he didn't register that I had no desire to speak to him, ever.
"No," I hissed, "You lost the right to be an uncle a long time ago."
"Gracey, I-"
"And you don't get to call me that anymore either."
Pushing my way past Embry I started up the stairs, Curtis silently watching everyone from my arms. I ignored the countless knocks on my bedroom door in the hour that followed and the whispering on the landing. I had ignored them all for five years, and I would continue to do so. I had been naive to think that they were all still part of my family, that I could forgive and forget.
I didn't let go of Curtis that night until he was fast asleep. Even then, I did not take my eyes off him as I changed into my pj's and tried to forget everything that had just transpired. My hand shook as I reached for my cell phone to call Dan.
It went straight to voicemail.
XXXXXXX
There was a moment when I woke up that I forgot where I was. Keeping my eyes closed I stretched my arms above my head and let out a contented sigh. I couldn't remember the last time I had woken up naturally without the shrill sound of the alarm clock squealing in my ear. Turning onto my side I reached out expecting to encounter Dan's solid frame beside me. Instead, I encountered only cold air. Only when I opened my eyes did reality come crashing down.
Fuck.
Sitting up I glanced frantically around the room for any sign of Curtis. The clock beside the bed read midday; so much for my plan of getting up early and escaping La Push before anyone else woke up. I cursed under my breath as my feet encountered the cold, wooden floor. I had to find Curtis. I couldn't believe he hadn't woken me up before leaving the room. He knew better than to talk to strangers.
My footsteps echoed throughout the entire house as I ran down the stairs. I paused briefly when I got to the bottom composing myself, and running a hand through my bed head before storming into the kitchen.
"Curtis?"
Kim and Embry looked up as I entered the kitchen. Kim looked like hell; her hair was wild, and her eye make-up smudged. It served her right after drinking so much wine. While I seemed to have grown up, she seemed to be stuck in the past. It was pathetic.
"Nice pyjamas Gracey," I ignored Embry's sarcastic comment as I heard a scream. Bypassing the table, I headed straight for the back door. Kim pushed away from the table and grabbed my hand before I could place it on the door handle.
"Let me go," I hissed. It was a bad idea to get in the way of me and Curtis.
"Just look." I struggled against her as she dragged me to the kitchen window. I could hear Embry crunching infuriatingly loudly on his cereal in the background.
"Just look," Kim repeated.
Curtis wasn't screaming in fear; he was laughing uncontrollably. It was a sound so rare that I hardly recognised it. The thought made me sad. Jared was chasing him around the garden with a wide grin on his face. Dan never played with Curtis like that, at least not when I was around.
"He loves children," Kim smiled watching as her fiancée picked Curtis up and spun him around. Normally Curtis was so wary of strangers, but he seemed so at home in my Aunt May's house. I couldn't decide whether that made me feel good, or whether it made me sick to the pit of my stomach. We couldn't stay long. We had to go back to New York, to our own lives. Our completely normal lives.
"Maybe he has changed…" My voice trailed off, realising I had spoken aloud.
"Yes," Kim sighed as she pressed a coffee cup into my hands, "Jared is amazing. He looks after me Grace, and I love him. The only weird thing about him is that he doesn't like chocolate."
"Who the fuck doesn't like chocolate?" Embry muttered from behind us, "What a weirdo."
"I'm so sorry about last night," Kim spoke quietly as she continued to watch Curtis through the window. Her eyes were glassy, and faraway.
"You lied to me about Embry." My voice was harsh.
"You lied to me about Curtis."
I just looked at her, while Embry let out a snort of laughter.
"You both haven't changed a bit," he laughed.
Ignoring him I perched up on the counter top cradling my mug of coffee, my eyes still on Curtis. I was not going to talk to Embry, I would not break.
"I've just been under a lot of stress with the wedding lately, and seeing you for the first time in years. It's all just so overwhelming," Kim was always creating excuses. At least I had the decency just to admit that I had lied, it had been what was best for me and Curtis at the time.
"We can leave if it's too overwhelming for you."
"Stop offering to leave, that would only make things worse. I want you here. You are my best friend."
"Was," I corrected her.
"No," she forced me to look at her, "You will always be my best friend, whether you want to be or not."
"Then you need to start telling me if I'm going to run into any blasts from the past," I winced as I thought of the one person who I couldn't see. I was going to have to tell her about Curtis's father at some point, she would have to help me avoid him.
"I promise," Kim blinked the tears from her eyes as she spoke, "It won't happen again."
"That goes for you too," I whirled on Embry. He just smirked and put another spoonful of cereal in his mouth. The chair creaked under his weight as he moved restlessly about. I still despised him.
"Maybe you should just accept your past, instead of running away from it."
I shot him a warning look as the back door swung open.
"Mommy," Curtis grinned as he flung himself into my arms. I kissed him lightly on the forehead as he wriggled about. I couldn't remember ever seeing him so happy.
"Did you see me and Uncle Jared pretending to be monkeys? Did you?" Uncle? My stomach twisted at the word. He was going to get too attached to La Push, to the people I had tried so hard to forget.
"Yes, yes I did. Did you have fun?"
"It was so good Mommy. And Aunt Kim said I could have ice cream after dinner tonight if I'm a good boy."
"Did she now?" I turned to glare at her, but she was studiously avoiding my gaze. I watched as Jared snuck up behind her and wrapped his arms tightly around her waist. She giggled as he placed tiny kisses on her neck. My heart squeezed tightly in my chest and I forced myself to look away.
"Yes," Curtis nodded his head in answer to my question, "She said she was entitled to spoil me as I am her only nephew."
"Piece of advice buddy," I whispered in his ear, "Don't ever listen to what Aunty Kim says."
"So no ice cream?" The smile that had been on his face only moments before had been replaced with a look of sadness. I forced myself to keep a straight face.
"I suppose this one time we can make an exception."
"I love you Mommy." I let out a laugh as he tightened his hold on my neck and placed a kiss on my cheek. I would never get tired of Curtis telling me that he loved me. At least someone did.
"I've got a better idea. Why don't we go to the Diner for an all day breakfast? You can have pancakes," Jared was grinning widely, and Kim looped her arm through her fiancées as they shot me questioning looks.
"Did I hear pancakes mentioned?"
Ignoring Embry, I shook my head adamantly. My plan was to not leave the safety of my Aunt's house except for the wedding. That had been the deal.
"I'm not hungry." At that exact moment, my stomach rumbled and revealed my lie.
"Sure you're not," Kim laughed.
"You need to lighten up cuz," she continued, "Besides, you love the Diner."
"Loved," I corrected.
"God," Embry muttered, "When did you become such a party pooper?"
"When did you become such a jackass?" I hissed, covering Curtis's ears with my hands.
"But Mommy," he struggled in my arms, "Aunt Kim says there's a beach near the Diner, and you promised we would go to a beach one day."
"I meant the one at home honey," I sighed.
"Why can't we go to this one?" He looked so damn sad, "Isn't it the beach you used to play on when you were as little as me?"
I glared at Kim, she had been telling him a lot while I slept. In future, I would have to make sure he didn't leave the bedroom without me.
"Okay, okay," He always managed to win me over, "Just let Mommy put on some clothes and then we'll go get some breakfast. How does that sound?"
"And then we can go to the beach?" Curtis was grinning so wide, I was afraid his face might actually break.
"Hmmm, I suppose so."
"You're the best Mommy," he placed another kiss on my cheek. I savoured the moment, hugging him to my chest.
"I swear if there are any more unexpected surprises at the Diner. I'm out of here before the day is over," I hissed at Kim before making my way back upstairs.
I don't think my heart could have taken any more surprises.
Thoughts?
AN: Okay, hey guys, thank you all so much for the positive reactions so far. So as you've probably gathered, for the purpose of this story Kim and Embry are cousins. And Embry is Grace's brother which means Kim and Grace are also cousins. I know this is not accurate, but I hope you guys will get on board with this. Love you all, speak soon x