A Penny For Your Tears

Sixteen

"Good morning, darling, the next few days are going to be quite busy so I thought we could all go to Brighton today." Grandma cheered happily she opened my curtain. I hissed at the sudden brightness before cowering underneath my sheets. I was exhausted, the events of last night still a blur.

"Olivia be down in an hour. It's quite a drive and the earlier we leave, the better." She ordered as she walked towards my door, however she hesitated before opening it. "Olivia?" She called;

"Mhm?" I mumbled, still half-asleep.

"Next time you go out with a boy, please don't come home as late as one am again, even if he's our neighbour." I shot up immediately at the sound of her words, while Grandma gave me a smirk as she left room. Suddenly all the events of last night came rushing back and I groaned throwing my head back on my pillow. Last night was definitely something, though Elias' apology slightly changed my opinion of him, I was still angry at him and Adam, and Alexia. Deciding not to let my mind dwell on it, I got up and quickly showered and got ready. With heavy stomps, I made my way down the stairs where my grandparents were already dressed, seated and eating breakfast. I gave them a smile as I sat down and reached for a croissant. I could sense my grandparents communicating with each other and I could tell that this sudden outing was more than just a spontaneity, they wanted to talk about something.

"Well, let's get a move on shall we?"Grandpa said after awhile and we all got up; my grandparents headed outside while I stayed to thank Amelia before rushing out to follow them. Jonathon stood beside the car, his hands folded in front of him as he waited for me.

"Good morning, Miss Gray." He greeted as he opened the door for him and I gave him a small smile. As I entered the car, I noticed a small tattoo on his wrist but thought nothing of it. As Jonathon got in the car, I looked out the window and stared out at Elias' house, part of me hoping I'd catch sight of him, the car started and soon the house was nothing more than a speck in the distance. I turned away from the window to face my grandparents who were whispering fervently to each other.

"Ok, what's up?" I asked, my arms crossed and brows raised.

"Well, you see, we wanted to talk to you about your father." Grandma finally admitted her grand plan and she honestly didn't have to go through all this effort. I would have been fine if she had just approached me. I loved my parents more than anything in this world and then they died, there was nothing more to it.

"You want to talk about dad?" I asked, and they gave each other awkward glances. "Like right now? In the car?"

"Well, of course not now. Bu-"

"Honey, Olivia is right. Now is not the time, let's give her some time to adjust before we bombard her with all of this." My grandpa interrupted and Grandma gave him the deadliest stare she could muster. One thing she hated more than anything was being interrupted. I sat back, happy the conversation had been evaded. I loved my dad and wanted nothing more than to talk about him, however knew the conversation would eventually lead to my grandparents wondering what happened to me the last two years after he died.

°°°°

The drive to Brighton was long and arduous and by the time we arrived I wanted nothing more to kiss the ground. I couldn't say I didn't have fun, the journey was filled with stories of my father when he was younger and his crazy antics. I was so engrossed by the stories that I had completely forgotten about the necklace that still lay waiting for me at home. But now, with my feet in the water and the breeze running through my hair, I had time to think. I wanted nothing more than to move on, that was the whole point of me coming here in the first place. I refused to believe that I had risked my life, running from that tyrant only to end up tormented by his memory. I could not accept that, however I couldn't possibly move on knowing that he could show up at any given moment. Elias was the closest thing I had to knowing where Luca could be so as much as I hated lying to all of them, it was something I had to do. But in the meantime, I had to do something with my life, I couldn't just sit here and be afraid. God forbid, he is ever able to take me back, I could at least go back having accomplished something. I pondered on the thought of university, it had always been somewhere I wanted to go. However, I knew I wasn't ready for that,not yet. A job, that sounded plausible. I was twenty, no longer a child, it was time I started making a living. My eventually, fell back to the necklace. How did it end up in my room? Someone must have found it, but who?

"Olivia, do you want a beer?" Grandpa called suddenly and I stared back at him, from my position near the water line, baffled. Where they asking a minor for a beer?

"Yes?" I answered, cautiously unsure if this was a trick. He smiled at me before turning to face the bartender again. Right, this was Europe. As I concentrated on the waves crashing against my feet a thought suddenly struck me.I had thrown the necklace out the window at night, there was a perfectly good chance that it didn't end up in the stream but in our garden. My grandpa often, worked in the garden so it was absolutely logical that he must have found it and put it back in my room. I laughed happily, a sense of relief washing over me. Yes, that was it, it must be.

However, at the back of my mind I knew it was just my consciousness trying to ease my paranoia.

A/N: Hey guys this was more of a filler chapter but I promise the next few chapters which will be coming soon will involve a lot more Elias and Olivia as well as Adam and the others and perhaps we'll finally know the mystery of the necklace. Please, by all means talk to me and share your theories about the story, I'm very excited to know what you all think.