A/N: So this chapter was pretty fun to write because I got the chance to create characters. You'l see what I mean when you read it. I am so amazed by the response to this story so far, and I love you all for it. Continue to review and give me feedback because it definitely motivates me to write faster. I was going to wait until the weekend for this chapter, but decided that i would hurry since you guys liked the story. In the next few chapters you will be figuring out what the main drama point is, but many of you have figured it out already I'm sure. There will be one or two more chapters in Kapuskasing after this one, and then I'm skipping to Halloween. And if you didn't know this, the Canadian Thanksgiving is n October. I am not stupid. lol! Thanks for reading!
Disclamer: I do not own degrassi.
Cam's POV (A week later)
I wake up to Maya drooling on my chest, and grin not wanting to wake her. I glance at the clock, and see that it is 9 AM. It's strange; Lexi usually wakes us up before 8. I slowly slip Mayas head on a pillow instead of me trying my best not to wake her, and place a quick kiss on her forehead before walking out of the room, and heading to Lexi's.
I walk into the bright pink bedroom, and see Lexi fast asleep on her bed. On a normal day I would wake her up if she slept in this late, but today is the day we are going to start the ten hour drive to Kapuskasing to celebrate Thanksgiving with my family. I decide that since today is going to be quite long that I should let both Maya and Lexi sleep as long as possible.
Surprisingly, Maya gets up before Lexi and by that time we need to start getting ready to go so we wake her up. I load the car full of the bags that we packed for our week long trip back to my hometown, while Maya prepares herself and Lexi for the long drive.
We are out of the house and on the road by 11 AM. Lexi sleeps for a long portion of the ride, and we take minimal rest stops. Maya offered to drive part of the ride, but I refused to let her. I was getting tired, but I love my BMW X6 and honestly don't trust Maya to drive it on the highway. I love my wife to death, but let's just say driving is not her strong point.
I am very excited to see my family. It has been years since I was last in Kapuskasing, and I haven't seen my older brothers in forever. My mom, dad, my younger brother, and my younger sister come to visit once a year or so, but it's really hard not seeing them all the time.
Luckily, the home sickness I feel now is nothing like how it was in high school. I am on medication for my anxiety issues, and it helps a lot with everything.
By the time we make it to my parents house it is 8:30 pm, and kind of dark out. I see that both Maya and Lexi are sleeping, and wake them with a loud "We're here!"
Maya jolts awake frightened, and I chuckle at the expression on her face, while Lexi pouts as she wakes up.
I look in the rearview mirror, and see Lexi looking upset. "Munchy… aren't you excited to see Grampy , Grammy, and everyone?" I ask her as I open my door.
She continues to sit in her car seat pouting, and I open her door, and entrap her from the seat.
"Cam!" I hear my mom's voice call the whole family runs out of the quaint home I grew up in to greet me. She quickly embraces me in a hug and soon after moves over to hug Maya who has gotten out of the car as well.
We go around hugging the whole family, and I notice that my mom is attempting to help Lexi out of her seat. Lexi gets upset with her, and I decide to intervene. "Lexi, why are you being so mean?" I ask my four year old daughter as she pouts pathetically.
Just as I suspected, she doesn't respond. I call Maya over, and she carries her inside the home, and up to the room that we are staying in kicking and screaming.
My younger brother Mickey and my dad help me bring the bags upstairs to the room that used to be me and my older brothers.
Maya is lying with Lexi on the bed trying to calm her down when we dop the bags off, and she shoos us away quickly.
On my way downstairs I stop and knock on my sister's door. When she doesn't respond I open the door and see her with sitting on her bed with a boy kissing him. She pulls away from him when she hears me come in, and I look at her appalled. "Audrey, what are you doing?" I snap at her.
"Umm… nothing" she says standing up from her bed, and adjusting her clothing. "That sure as hell doesn't look like nothing!" I continue with anger.
"Sean, you should go." She smiles at the boy sitting on her bed looking terrified. "I'm sorry! I'm a huge fan of yours… umm sorry." The teenage boy says walking past me quickly as I scowl at him disgusted.
Once he is gone I look at my little sister. "What the hell Audrey?" I yell in a protective tone.
"What?" she says irritated. "What are you doing with a guy in your room?" I ask as if it's not obvious.
"Seriously Cam? I'm seventeen. I'm allowed to have boyfriends." She says walking out of her bedroom, and into the hall. I roll my eyes at her in annoyance, and follow her down the stairs.
"You know your daughter was doing unspeakably disgusting things with some boy in her room." I say to my mom as Audrey sits on the couch.
"What?" she says looking at Audrey concerned. "We were just kissing!" she snaps and my mom looks at her in disbelief. "Audrey! You knew your brother was coming tonight!" my mom yells at her. "I'm serious we were kissing." Audrey shouts back.
"Mom, they were just kissing" I say feeling bad that she was getting mad at Audrey. "But please tell me you don't do more than that?" I ask Audrey grossed out at the thought of my sister and that kid.
"That is none of your business!" she shouts getting up from her seat, and stomping up the stairs.
A sour expression comes across my face, and I don't think I have ever been more grossed out in my life. "Mom, she's just a kid. Why would you let her have a boy in her room?" I ask feeling the need to vomit.
"Campbell, she is a senior in high school not a baby!" my mom tells me putting a hand on my shoulder. "Are you hungry?" she asks me with a smile.
"No." I respond frowning before she walks into the kitchen. "Where's my favorite brother?" I hear a familiar voce call as the door swings open. I turn around, and see my brother Chase walking through the door.
"Hey bro!" I walk over to him and initiate our childhood special hand shake. "I was actually talking about Mickey, but I guess you'll do." He jokes continuing the shake.
Growing up I was closest to Chase most likely because we are closer in age. Chase is only two years older than me while Justin is two years older than him. Mickey is the youngest out of the five of us at the young age of fifteen, and Audrey is only two years older than him.
I am the middle child, but I was the baby for nine years before Audrey came along. I wasn't around too much while Mickey and Audrey were growing up on account of the fact that I joined the Ice hounds when I turned 15, but I still consider myself close to all of my siblings. I love them a ton even if I rarely see them anymore.
"So… where's Justin at?" I ask Chase knowing that Chase was living at Justin's house last time I talked to him.
"Oh… did I forget to tell you? I am living with my girlfriend now." He says happily. I am honestly surprised that he has a girlfriend that he is steady enough to live with. Yes, Chase is twenty-eight, but he is not really the type to settle down. He goes out a lot, and I have been hearing about his many one night stands since I was sixteen.
"Do I get to meet this lucky lady who made Chase Saunders settle down?" I ask him punching his arm playfully.
"Of course you do. She's coming on Thanksgiving, and maybe one night this week you can get Audrey to watch your kid, and we can all go out." He says optimistically.
"Yeah, I guess that would be fun. How's Justin been doing? I ask Chase curiously since I haven't talked with him in months.
"He's good…" he says in a normal tone before leaning over to my ear and whispering. "Nora is preggers, but don't tell mom and dad. It's a secret."
"Really? When are they gonna tell them?" I ask my brother quietly.
"Dude, I don't know." He responds with a shrug.
My dad sits down on one of the couches, and calls Chase and me over to join him.
"How was the drive?" my dad asks me with a smile. "Good, Kind of long." I reply looking at him for the first time since I got here. He is starting get a little gray and his hair line is receding further back on his head, but he is 55, and I suppose that it is expected in a man his age.
My mom walks in carrying a tray of cheese and crackers, and sets it on the coffee table.
She sits next to my dad, and we all catch up. I really need to visit more often because I've missed so much in the last year even with my mom's weekly updates.
Mickey comes to talk to us too, and I notice that he has hit puberty since they came down to Toronto over spring break last year. He's getting tall, and starting to look more Chase and me but with a bigger frame.
"Mickey, you should tell your brother your big news!" My mom says excitedly. "Mom, I'm not even sure if I'm going to go." He replies to her annoyed.
"Well ask Cam what he thinks about it." She smiles at him.
"Okay… well I got offered a position on the Ice Hounds, but I'm pretty sure it's just because I'm related to you." He says discouraged.
"Not true! Cam, you really should see him on the ice. He reminds me a lot of you at that age." My dad interjects and Mick just gives him a half hearted grin.
I can't help, but feel proud of my baby brother. I am the one who taught him how to play hockey when he was a kid, and I had no clue that he had gotten good enough for Ice Hounds.
"You should do it man!" I say proudly. "I don't know… You hated being away from home. I don't know if I can do that." He says nervously.
"Well, you wouldn't need a billet family. I live close enough to Degrassi. I will have to talk to Maya about it, but I'm sure you could take one of the spare bedrooms." I say trying to talk him into it.
"Cam, are you sure about that?" my mom asks me skeptically.
"I think it would be fun to have my little brother living with me… What do you say Mick?" I ask him curiously.
"I'll think about it." He says looking a little more excited about the opportunity.
We talk more about how Audrey is set to be Valedictorian of her class, and how Chase just got a promotion at the factory that he works in. It seems that all of my siblings are doing well, and I am so proud of all of them.
Maya comes down the stairs, and I look at the clock, and see that it's nearing 10 o clock.
"Hey M, get over here." I say calling her to sit by me on the couch. "I just got her to go to sleep. I have no idea why she is so cranky. I'm sure she'll be fine tomorrow." She says as soon as she sits down.
"Hello Little Miss Maya! My brother Chase waves to her, and she grins back at him. "Hey! How you been?" she asks.
"Good… good" he responds casually, and we get back into conversation.
"Mickey might be coming to Toronto." I tell Maya, and she looks at me curiously. "Apparently, he's following in my footsteps; he may be joining the Ice Hounds." I add clarifying.
She looks at him with an excited surprised face. "That is so great!"
"So M, how would you feel about Mickey maybe staying with us in Toronto?" I ask her knowing my wife well enough to know that she would be fine with it.
"Of course he can stay with us. I love Mickey! No offense to Chase, but he's my favorite of your brothers, Cam." Maya says jokingly, and Mick smiles from across the room a shyly.
The Audrey comes down the stairs and gives Maya a hug before taking a seat on the floor.
"How's my favorite sister in-law?" she asks Maya sweetly. "I'm tired, but happy to be here… How's my favorite sister in-law?" Maya responds asking her the same question, but I but it before she has a chance to answer.
"Oh, she's just dandy. She's right on track to be valedictorian!" I say bragging for my little sister.
"Ooh… Good job girl!" Maya says giving her a high five.
Maya and my sister are actually pretty close. Whenever my family visits or we come visit them, Maya and Audrey spend a lot of time together. I feel that Audrey looks up to Maya like a sister since Maya and I got married when she was eleven, and since Audrey has four brothers and no actual sisters.
"So what's the plan for tomorrow?" I ask my parents as conversations continue.
"Well I have to go grocery shopping for thanksgiving on Monday, and I was thinking that Maya and Audrey could help me… if that's okay with you of course?" she asks Maya and my sister, and they both nod in agreement.
"And I was thinking that all of us men could go fishing. It's not very often that we are all in the same place, and I think it would be great to do something together like we used to." My dad adds looking happy.
It's true that we haven't had the opportunity to hang out much since I moved out to Toronto, but I do remember the whole family going fishing on the river when we were kids. We would go out on the boat, and just have fun for hours, and I have to admit that the thought of rekindling my childhood memories makes me kind of excited. Knowing my older brothers the way I do, I know that they will turn it into a competition just like always, but I'm okay with that.
"Is it okay if Lexi tags along with shopping?" Maya asks my mom curiously.
"Oh Maya dear of course, the more time I get to spend with my little angel the better." She replies giddily.
We continue to talk about everything that has happened in the last year, when I notice that Mickey won't get his head out of his phone. "Hey Mickey, who're you texting that's so important?" I ask him teasingly.
"Oh, umm… no one." He replies sticking his phone in his jeans pocket. I notice that he is blushing, and look at him curiously. "Well obviously it's someone... a girl perhaps?" I inquire.
"Yeah… it's my girlfriend Kelsey." He says shyly. "I'm sure Kelsey would love to hear that you referred to her as 'no one'." Chase says mockingly.
It's hard for me to see my little siblings all grown up. It feels like just yesterday Audrey was my annoying three year old sister trying to go into my room, and mess with my stuff. It feels especially weird to see Mickey all grown up.
I never got the chance to know him while he was growing up, and the more I hear about his accomplishments and attitude the more I see that he is a lot like me at that age.
It starts to get late, and I excuse myself to go upstairs and sleep. Maya comes in after talking to Audrey for about another hour, and I can't believe that it is midnight. Sleep comes over me quickly as soon as Maya comes in and the house quiets down. Lexi sleeps in between us on the queen bed that has replaced the twin beds that occupied the room when it was mine and Chase's.
The small girl has been especially tired lately, and it is fine most of the time because it lets Maya and I have some time together, but today it was kind of a bummer. I know that my parents were really excited to see her, and they barely had a chance since she was being so crabby. Hopefully, she is back to her happy little self tomorrow.