Homecoming - Part Two
Title: Homecoming (Part Two)
Part: 2/3
Pairing: -- Guess again! ;)
Summary: A/U - Hanson is not 'Hanson', no fame what so ever. No other siblings. Story is centred around the idea of a long-time family friend coming home for the holidays and feeling an old spark be rekindled, as forbidden as it may be.
Authors notes:
1. Was meant to be a Christmas story but didn't get finished so I'm making holiday themes less significant.
2. Now three parts, instead of two. Just to keep this interesting.
Word Count: 2167
The sudden sound of the door slamming jolted each and every one of us from our comfort in the living room. Over an hour had passed since Jade had arrived, but time had felt much longer than that to me. I couldn't help but lose interest in conversations about people that I knew nothing about, about lives that I had once, but was no longer, intertwined in, I felt more like an outsider than a friend. I didn't feel excluded, each and every person had made an effort to include me in the conversation but I just hadn't had much more than a few words to contribute.
"Zac?" Diana had called next, knowing without having to see, which of her children had returned home as she rose from her recliner and headed for the hallway.
I followed her with my eyes, wanting to jump up and go with her, curious about what could have him so upset. I had always remembered Zac with a smile; no matter how much time had passed I felt an innate pull to him and a growing anxiety as I waited in a now tense feeling room. After what felt like ages, I heard foot steps on the basement steps and a few moments later, Diana appeared in the archway.
"He's... not feeling too well." She said, pausing momentarily between her words in a way that made me suspicious.
"Is he sick? I hope he didn't catch that flu going around..." Isaac wondered out loud before Diana cuts him off.
"No - He's fine that way. Something happened with Kelsey, I think."
I felt my body run hot and then cold within seconds, her name takes me aback once again. It's just hard to imagine Zac - the little boy that I remember - as being grown up and having a girlfriend. I feel a little nauseous as well, to think that something might be amiss between them. I couldn't help but wonder about who tossed which stone, my nosy curiosity had been getting the better of me as I thought of him all by himself downstairs - as well as the welcome reprieve from the awkward and boring conversation I had been caught up in in the sitting room.
But I stay. I don't have the courage nor the gumption to ask to be excused, especially for the sake of prying into his business. It's not my place, at least, not any more.
Diana follows the usual Hanson tradition and orders what looks like hundreds of dollars of Chinese Food and my stomach grumbles loudly as I watch her unload box after box of steaming food. I hear foot steps on the stairs and suspect that Zac is making an appearance for the temptation of food. I'm not prepared for the boy who steps into the kitchen next, however. Dark brown eyes are sunken and red rimmed, his face is blotchy and he doesn't look up from the floor as he shuffles in.
"Are you hungry, sweetheart?" Diana floated across the room and tried to put an arm around his shoulder, but he squirms away.
"A little..." He mumbles as he reaches for a plate.
He is not the Zac I remember, and I ask myself as well, does he remember me? He'd certainly not bothered to look in my direction, much less say hello. I watch him, chewing on my lip with worry as he takes a few - okay, several - chicken balls and a heaping spoonful of sticky sauce. Some things about him seem unchanged. By the time he's finished loading his plate, I'd mustered some courage.
"Zee?" I step towards him and reach my fingers towards his arm.
Zac froze, body bristling, but his face is soft as he turned to look towards me. "Maddy - You did come." His lips twitch in the shape of a tiny smile and at that moment, my heart melted.
"Everything okay?" I asked him, knowing full well that the true answer was no.
He nods slowly instead, defying my sense. "I'll be fine."
"Do you want to talk?" I shuffled up to him a little closer, wondering if I can lure him somewhere quiet, give us both a little relief. My nosiness was getting the better of me.
It's silent for a moment then and I can see the cogs turning in the familiar boys head. It's impossible to ever really read Zac, he's a little complex in his feelings, but I could tell by the shift in his expression that I'd stepped on a toe.
"No, not really." He admitted in a flat and dry tone that made my stomach fall through to my feet.
I stared after him for a moment, wondering if I'd heard him correctly or he might change his mind. I don't know what I'd been expecting him to say, but it hadn't been with the tone he'd used. Instead of adding anything else, he simply turned his shoulder and headed for the stairs to the basement. I watched as the door closed and he disappeared, replaying our conversation again and again before finally re-joining the rest of the Hanson family in the living room.
Taylor's arrival a couple of hours later had felt like a blessing in many ways. With Zac stewing down in the basement, my hope of friendly distraction had been slashed. I listened through what felt like a life time of stories; old college stories between Isaac and Jade. They were really so perfect for each other that it made me a little nauseous. She looked at him with wide eyes, full of adoration and love. His arm had been wrapped around her the whole time, I watched as his fingers drew circles and patterns up and down her shoulder where her baggy Angora sweater fell away. It was no secret that he loved her as much as she loved him. Instead of watching them, I fixed my eyes on the dancing snow flakes outside the window, tumbling down onto the sprawling land that surrounded the Hanson homestead. Almost two acres, it was a lot meant more for the country than the outside of Tulsa and it was the largest on our street. An old barn, it's green paint faded and cracking, sat at the very farthest edge of the property, backed by a thick and lush forest. When I had been younger, my mind would paint wonderful fantasies of the farm that must have once consumed this property. I'd explore the barn with the boys, running my fingers over the wooden boards of the old stall and I'd once found an old horse shoe. In fact, the hunk of metal still hangs from the corner of my dressing mirror. My day dreams had been interrupted by a red Mustang pulling up the driveway. I recognized it immediately as Taylor's and sat up, watching as he pulled into the garage.
The sun had begun to set, painting the sky a rosy orange colour and it was beginning to feel more and more like Christmas eve when I heard the front door open and the sound of boots. I noticed that Diana didn't bother to get up and greet him the way that she had Zac, but Taylor found his way into the sitting room moments later without any trouble.
"You survived the mall?" Isaac snickered, shuffling on the couch to make enough room for Taylor.
"Barely." Taylor admitted, crossing the room and choosing not the remaining seat on the sofa, but the empty space on the love seat next to me instead.
I tried my best to look at him - without looking at him, but he was impossible to ignore. Years had passed but many things about him remained the same - his face was young looking, soft eyes and a kind smile, the same as always. He was clean shaven but his long blond hair was a little unkempt, I couldn't help but want to drag my fingers through the tresses. My eyes wandered to the collection of chokers on his next, many were the same as he wore as a teenager but a couple were ones that I didn't recognize. He had chosen a pair of well fitting blue skinny jeans and paired it with an old cardigan a few sizes too big, it seemed. When he rolled one sleeve up, I noticed immediately the brightly coloured ink on his skin and wondered how far it went. A moment passed before Taylor caught me, and when his curious eyes caught mine, I felt my heart stop.
"When did you get the tattoos?" I blurted out.
Taylor's lips eased their way into a smile and I relaxed, ever so slightly.
"Nice to see you again too, Maddy" He chuckled.
"The boy is a walking graffiti board." Walker scoffed, looking over from his arm chair and eyeing Taylor's exposed and inked arms as if the limbs were a snake, coiled and ready to strike. It had been obvious that I'd struck a nerve in the Hanson household.
"I have one as well." I had said, sitting up more straightly.
Taylor's smile grew wider. "Do you? Maybe you aren't the girl I remember." He mused, his blue eyes dancing with excitement.
"I wouldn't be so sure of that, Tay. It's just a tattoo." I blushed a little bit. Taylor had always had a way of flirting - if only with his eyes. A way of looking at you that made you feel special, as if you were the only person in the room.
Taylor smiled wider still and nodded. "I know it's just a tattoo to us... But around here..." He eyed his father for a moment and when Walker cleared his throat, the room grew deadly silent.
"Isaac, how is your new job going?"
The room was filled once again with the sound of Isaac's voice - he'd done a lot more talking that evening than I'd ever remembered too, and it wasn't that I didn't want to listen to his stories or hear about his life, but there was a certain... almost, smugness to his tone that had been growing increasingly apparent. Or, maybe it was just jealousy, I'd wondered to myself as I watched with a somewhat bitter feeling as she snuggled into his side, proud as anything to be the girlfriend of the apparent golden child.
"Hey..." Taylor whispered, nudging my thigh gently. "You wanna get out of here for a bit?"
"What do you want to do?"
Taylor shrugged. "Mom, dad." He cleared his throat, interrupting Isaac in the middle of his speech about how using coupons had saved him twenty six dollars in four weeks. Not exactly the most interesting conversation, and yet they still stared daggers at Taylor for pausing it.
"What?" Diana asked. "What is it, Taylor?"
"Is it cool if I show Madden my new guitar?"
"Sure, dear."
"Go ahead, Taylor... show her the-"
"Walker" Diana's brisk tone cut into her husband's sentence and the tall man fell silent. I smiled inwardly. "Not now. It's Christmas."
"C'mon Mad" Taylor leapt up from the couch and I had been a lot more eager to follow him than I would let on as I crept out of the room behind him, feeling a little bit guilty until I set foot in the kitchen and breathed a sigh of relief.
Taylor paused, turning to me and smiling. "How long were you suffering?"
"Oh hush, it wasn't that bad." I smiled and then reached out to playfully nudge his arm.
"Oh yeah?" Taylor countered, nudging me back, fingers grazing the soft spot that he knew was ticklish, right beneath my ribs.
I sucked in a breath. "Alright." I admitted. "Thank you for saving me."
"My pleasure."
He did that thing with his eyes again, smiling without moving his lips and causing my heart to race out of control. Taylor held my gaze for a moment longer than I was comfortable with, and both of us ended up with red cheeks by the time he cleared his throat and reached for the door to the basement steps. I realized, then, with a pounding in my chest, that I had no idea what was about to happen. Taylor yanked open the door and the muffled, but still cranked angrily loud, sound of heavy rock music poured out. He acted as if he didn't even notice the blaring music and turned to me, pausing.
"Wanna go out back and smoke a joint?"
Part: 2/3
Pairing: -- Guess again! ;)
Summary: A/U - Hanson is not 'Hanson', no fame what so ever. No other siblings. Story is centred around the idea of a long-time family friend coming home for the holidays and feeling an old spark be rekindled, as forbidden as it may be.
Authors notes:
1. Was meant to be a Christmas story but didn't get finished so I'm making holiday themes less significant.
2. Now three parts, instead of two. Just to keep this interesting.
Word Count: 2167
The sudden sound of the door slamming jolted each and every one of us from our comfort in the living room. Over an hour had passed since Jade had arrived, but time had felt much longer than that to me. I couldn't help but lose interest in conversations about people that I knew nothing about, about lives that I had once, but was no longer, intertwined in, I felt more like an outsider than a friend. I didn't feel excluded, each and every person had made an effort to include me in the conversation but I just hadn't had much more than a few words to contribute.
"Zac?" Diana had called next, knowing without having to see, which of her children had returned home as she rose from her recliner and headed for the hallway.
I followed her with my eyes, wanting to jump up and go with her, curious about what could have him so upset. I had always remembered Zac with a smile; no matter how much time had passed I felt an innate pull to him and a growing anxiety as I waited in a now tense feeling room. After what felt like ages, I heard foot steps on the basement steps and a few moments later, Diana appeared in the archway.
"He's... not feeling too well." She said, pausing momentarily between her words in a way that made me suspicious.
"Is he sick? I hope he didn't catch that flu going around..." Isaac wondered out loud before Diana cuts him off.
"No - He's fine that way. Something happened with Kelsey, I think."
I felt my body run hot and then cold within seconds, her name takes me aback once again. It's just hard to imagine Zac - the little boy that I remember - as being grown up and having a girlfriend. I feel a little nauseous as well, to think that something might be amiss between them. I couldn't help but wonder about who tossed which stone, my nosy curiosity had been getting the better of me as I thought of him all by himself downstairs - as well as the welcome reprieve from the awkward and boring conversation I had been caught up in in the sitting room.
But I stay. I don't have the courage nor the gumption to ask to be excused, especially for the sake of prying into his business. It's not my place, at least, not any more.
Diana follows the usual Hanson tradition and orders what looks like hundreds of dollars of Chinese Food and my stomach grumbles loudly as I watch her unload box after box of steaming food. I hear foot steps on the stairs and suspect that Zac is making an appearance for the temptation of food. I'm not prepared for the boy who steps into the kitchen next, however. Dark brown eyes are sunken and red rimmed, his face is blotchy and he doesn't look up from the floor as he shuffles in.
"Are you hungry, sweetheart?" Diana floated across the room and tried to put an arm around his shoulder, but he squirms away.
"A little..." He mumbles as he reaches for a plate.
He is not the Zac I remember, and I ask myself as well, does he remember me? He'd certainly not bothered to look in my direction, much less say hello. I watch him, chewing on my lip with worry as he takes a few - okay, several - chicken balls and a heaping spoonful of sticky sauce. Some things about him seem unchanged. By the time he's finished loading his plate, I'd mustered some courage.
"Zee?" I step towards him and reach my fingers towards his arm.
Zac froze, body bristling, but his face is soft as he turned to look towards me. "Maddy - You did come." His lips twitch in the shape of a tiny smile and at that moment, my heart melted.
"Everything okay?" I asked him, knowing full well that the true answer was no.
He nods slowly instead, defying my sense. "I'll be fine."
"Do you want to talk?" I shuffled up to him a little closer, wondering if I can lure him somewhere quiet, give us both a little relief. My nosiness was getting the better of me.
It's silent for a moment then and I can see the cogs turning in the familiar boys head. It's impossible to ever really read Zac, he's a little complex in his feelings, but I could tell by the shift in his expression that I'd stepped on a toe.
"No, not really." He admitted in a flat and dry tone that made my stomach fall through to my feet.
I stared after him for a moment, wondering if I'd heard him correctly or he might change his mind. I don't know what I'd been expecting him to say, but it hadn't been with the tone he'd used. Instead of adding anything else, he simply turned his shoulder and headed for the stairs to the basement. I watched as the door closed and he disappeared, replaying our conversation again and again before finally re-joining the rest of the Hanson family in the living room.
Taylor's arrival a couple of hours later had felt like a blessing in many ways. With Zac stewing down in the basement, my hope of friendly distraction had been slashed. I listened through what felt like a life time of stories; old college stories between Isaac and Jade. They were really so perfect for each other that it made me a little nauseous. She looked at him with wide eyes, full of adoration and love. His arm had been wrapped around her the whole time, I watched as his fingers drew circles and patterns up and down her shoulder where her baggy Angora sweater fell away. It was no secret that he loved her as much as she loved him. Instead of watching them, I fixed my eyes on the dancing snow flakes outside the window, tumbling down onto the sprawling land that surrounded the Hanson homestead. Almost two acres, it was a lot meant more for the country than the outside of Tulsa and it was the largest on our street. An old barn, it's green paint faded and cracking, sat at the very farthest edge of the property, backed by a thick and lush forest. When I had been younger, my mind would paint wonderful fantasies of the farm that must have once consumed this property. I'd explore the barn with the boys, running my fingers over the wooden boards of the old stall and I'd once found an old horse shoe. In fact, the hunk of metal still hangs from the corner of my dressing mirror. My day dreams had been interrupted by a red Mustang pulling up the driveway. I recognized it immediately as Taylor's and sat up, watching as he pulled into the garage.
The sun had begun to set, painting the sky a rosy orange colour and it was beginning to feel more and more like Christmas eve when I heard the front door open and the sound of boots. I noticed that Diana didn't bother to get up and greet him the way that she had Zac, but Taylor found his way into the sitting room moments later without any trouble.
"You survived the mall?" Isaac snickered, shuffling on the couch to make enough room for Taylor.
"Barely." Taylor admitted, crossing the room and choosing not the remaining seat on the sofa, but the empty space on the love seat next to me instead.
I tried my best to look at him - without looking at him, but he was impossible to ignore. Years had passed but many things about him remained the same - his face was young looking, soft eyes and a kind smile, the same as always. He was clean shaven but his long blond hair was a little unkempt, I couldn't help but want to drag my fingers through the tresses. My eyes wandered to the collection of chokers on his next, many were the same as he wore as a teenager but a couple were ones that I didn't recognize. He had chosen a pair of well fitting blue skinny jeans and paired it with an old cardigan a few sizes too big, it seemed. When he rolled one sleeve up, I noticed immediately the brightly coloured ink on his skin and wondered how far it went. A moment passed before Taylor caught me, and when his curious eyes caught mine, I felt my heart stop.
"When did you get the tattoos?" I blurted out.
Taylor's lips eased their way into a smile and I relaxed, ever so slightly.
"Nice to see you again too, Maddy" He chuckled.
"The boy is a walking graffiti board." Walker scoffed, looking over from his arm chair and eyeing Taylor's exposed and inked arms as if the limbs were a snake, coiled and ready to strike. It had been obvious that I'd struck a nerve in the Hanson household.
"I have one as well." I had said, sitting up more straightly.
Taylor's smile grew wider. "Do you? Maybe you aren't the girl I remember." He mused, his blue eyes dancing with excitement.
"I wouldn't be so sure of that, Tay. It's just a tattoo." I blushed a little bit. Taylor had always had a way of flirting - if only with his eyes. A way of looking at you that made you feel special, as if you were the only person in the room.
Taylor smiled wider still and nodded. "I know it's just a tattoo to us... But around here..." He eyed his father for a moment and when Walker cleared his throat, the room grew deadly silent.
"Isaac, how is your new job going?"
The room was filled once again with the sound of Isaac's voice - he'd done a lot more talking that evening than I'd ever remembered too, and it wasn't that I didn't want to listen to his stories or hear about his life, but there was a certain... almost, smugness to his tone that had been growing increasingly apparent. Or, maybe it was just jealousy, I'd wondered to myself as I watched with a somewhat bitter feeling as she snuggled into his side, proud as anything to be the girlfriend of the apparent golden child.
"Hey..." Taylor whispered, nudging my thigh gently. "You wanna get out of here for a bit?"
"What do you want to do?"
Taylor shrugged. "Mom, dad." He cleared his throat, interrupting Isaac in the middle of his speech about how using coupons had saved him twenty six dollars in four weeks. Not exactly the most interesting conversation, and yet they still stared daggers at Taylor for pausing it.
"What?" Diana asked. "What is it, Taylor?"
"Is it cool if I show Madden my new guitar?"
"Sure, dear."
"Go ahead, Taylor... show her the-"
"Walker" Diana's brisk tone cut into her husband's sentence and the tall man fell silent. I smiled inwardly. "Not now. It's Christmas."
"C'mon Mad" Taylor leapt up from the couch and I had been a lot more eager to follow him than I would let on as I crept out of the room behind him, feeling a little bit guilty until I set foot in the kitchen and breathed a sigh of relief.
Taylor paused, turning to me and smiling. "How long were you suffering?"
"Oh hush, it wasn't that bad." I smiled and then reached out to playfully nudge his arm.
"Oh yeah?" Taylor countered, nudging me back, fingers grazing the soft spot that he knew was ticklish, right beneath my ribs.
I sucked in a breath. "Alright." I admitted. "Thank you for saving me."
"My pleasure."
He did that thing with his eyes again, smiling without moving his lips and causing my heart to race out of control. Taylor held my gaze for a moment longer than I was comfortable with, and both of us ended up with red cheeks by the time he cleared his throat and reached for the door to the basement steps. I realized, then, with a pounding in my chest, that I had no idea what was about to happen. Taylor yanked open the door and the muffled, but still cranked angrily loud, sound of heavy rock music poured out. He acted as if he didn't even notice the blaring music and turned to me, pausing.
"Wanna go out back and smoke a joint?"