Chapter 28

Loren walked up to her house and opened the door. It was 4 o'clock in the after noon. Her mom was sitting with Max on the couch.

"I'm home," she said closing the door.

"How was school?" Max asked turning down the TV.

"Mind-numbing. How was you day?" she asked.

"Boring." He smiled.

Loren sat in the chair in the living room, "Eddie and I have a live interview at his place tonight at 8."

"That's exciting," Nora said sitting up.

"It's the last thing I want to do right now." she said leaning back.

"What's wrong?" Nora asked.

Loren looked at Max, unsure if she wanted to talk about it in front of him but she couldn't keep anything from her mom, "Eddie wants to talk about me possibly moving in with him."

"What… no!" Nora said putting her coffee down.

"Excuse me?"

"You're only 18, and only been dating, what, 3 weeks?"

"I was never planning on doing it anytime soon."

"I don't understand why you two are moving so fast." Max said.

Loren, enraged with her mother for talking down to her as if she was a child, got up and walked to her room. She started sorting through her closet for an outfit. 20 minutes later, Nora knocked on the door and came in.

"I'm sorry Loren, but you asked-"

"I didn't ask for your opinion. I needed my mom to talk to me like a friend not like I'm twelve."

"Well Loren I am your mother, not your friend."

"But I'm 18, and in a very serious relationship. You're the only one I trust with advice when it comes to this. Mel would tell me to move in and never leave the house. I didn't expect you to shut me down so quickly without hearing what I have to say first. And Max? 'I don't understand why you two are moving so fast' I didn't want his input."

"Loren he was only trying to help as was I. I'm sorry if we didn't tell you what you wanted to hear."

"That's not why I told you! I wanted advice; not to be put down so… hurtfully! You treat me like I can't do anything; like I'm an idiot!"

"Loren, you know I don't think that."

"Really? Because for the last few months everything I have made a decision on you shut down faster than the speed of light."

"Well, I'm sorry for trying to protect you."

"Please, stop saying it's your 'momma bear' instincts and that you're not ready to watch me to grow up. You've used that excuse enough, the truth is you just never trust me; I don't think you ever have."

"Loren, you shouldn't talk to her that way. She's your mother; she only wants what's best." Max said defending Nora.

"Yes, thank you Max for your input." Loren said in an angry tone.

"Loren Elizabeth watch your tone."

"OF ALL TIMES TO NEED MY MOM THIS IS THE ONE TIME I NEED YOU TO LISTEN TO ME! If you did you would have heard me say that I didn't think it was a good idea and that I wanted to wait a few months after graduation to even consider the idea. But you were to busy jumping down my throat to listen." Loren picked up her bag and walked out of the house. The car Eddie called to pick her up was waiting outside. She saw her mom and Max in the doorway, watching her leave. Loren knew that she could be a brat about things sometimes, but this just got under her skin and made her angrier than anything else in the world.

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She knocked on Eddie's door three times and shivered. She had left her coat at home and she was in desperate need of a hot shower, "Eddie!" she said knocking again.

After a few minutes he opened the door to see Loren shivering and obviously upset. He wrapped her in his arms and pulled her inside and on the couch. They sat like this for 20 minutes, in silence; she didn't cry she just sat there until she stopped shivering.

"Can I take a shower?" she said standing up.

"Do you want to talk about it?"

"I just really want to shower."

"Go right ahead, can I join you?" he winked.

She didn't even smirk when she said, "Sure, why not."

He knew that that was a sign that something bad went on. He heard the shower turn on and he sat in the bathroom, "Loren, what happened."

"I needed to talk to my mom about your offer, and she just… shot it down. She didn't even let me explain or see how I felt about it. She flat out said no. It felt like she was making me feel like a child. Then Max said we were moving too fast, and it just sent me off so I had to get up and walk away."

"My dad was there?"

"Yeah, sorry I just didn't want to be rude and tell him to leave, but ugh! Then she came walking in saying that she's my mom and not my friend and how she shouldn't tell me what I want to hear. I felt like she was treating me like an idiot and I just had to leave."

Eddie undressed and got in the shower, "Look, they are just trying to look out for us."

"I know but the way she expresses it just…"

"I know my dad does it too." he kissed her on the cheek and turned to face the water. She wrapped her arms around him and rested her head on his back. He turned, looked down at her and kissed her deeply. Loren let go and let herself have 'fun' before her interview.

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"Hi, I'm Loren." she said shaking hands with Elizabeth Harper.

"I know, thank you for doing the interview." Harper said.

"Thank you for making an interview with me." Loren said in her normal, girl-next-door self. Eddie shook Elizabeth's hand while holding back a laugh at Loren.

They sat on the piano, "You're cute." he said.

"Was I bad?"

"No, you just seemed so down to earth."

"Is that a good thing?"

He let out a soft giggle, "Very good."

"We're ready for you two now." Elizabeth said taking her seat.

A camera started blinking read and Loren heard the camera man say, "3...2...1..."

"Elizabeth Harper here with Hollywood's hottest new couple, Eddie Duran and Loren Tate. Or as the fans are calling them 'Leddie'"

"Leddie? That's adorable." Loren said uncontrollably; she had forgotten they hadn't gone full public with their relationship.

"So it's true, you two are a couple?"

"I though it was obvious." Eddie said smiling.

"So, Loren, what's it like to go from a high school girl to singer-songwriter- Eddie Duran's girlfriend?"

"Well, being Eddie's girlfriend is very nice, but going from 6th period Chemistry to the studio makes it all surreal and knowing that just a few weeks ago I was writing alone in my room make it even weirder."

"Has it been a tough adjustment?"

"At times; sometimes it's hard to know who true friends are, but I have my mom and my best friend, Melissa Sanders, to help me through it."

"Melissa, she's the one who entered you in Eddie's competition?"

"Yes, I hated singing in front of anything-"

"Besides my poster." Eddie smiled and Loren blushed.

"Yeah," she grinned and blushed, "But she recorded me singing sent it in. This is all because of her,really. Eddie helped, too I guess."

"Eddie, has your life changed any?"

"Yes, Loren changed my life-in a good way. She kind of brought me back to my roots; reminded me why I started writing in the first place. She's helped me write new songs."

"Sounds like you two have the perfect romance."

"I think we do." Eddie said, Loren smiled.

"So Leddie is there love in the air?"

Loren and Eddie looked at each other, smiled and said, "Yep."

"And wedding bells?"

"We have a while for that!" Loren said as they all laughed.

"Well, sadly I am being told 10 minutes is all we get. Thank you both so much for being on the show!"

"Thank you for having us!" Loren said. With that, the blinking light went off and the 3 stood up.

They all shook hands, "Thanks again." Harper said.

"Bye," Loren said. When everyone cleared out and their food was heated up Loren sat down, exhausted. "It's…only…Monday!"

"We need to talk"

"About…?"

"Do you want to move in or not?"

"Not right now. Maybe a few weeks after graduation. I'm not ready for that step Eddie."

"Okay."

"You're not mad?"

"Loren, I love you, and I just want you to be happy and comfortable."

"3 weeks."

"3 weeks."

Don't know when 29 will be up. I think I'm only writing like 5 more chapters before it ends... big surprises are coming soon!