Second Chance Mates

CANON EXTRA: Ambrose Family Tragedy

This is the story of how Ryland and Kai's parents died.

[TRIGGER WARNING: fatal car accident]

~~~

*Ryland's POV*

"Boys!" My mom calls from downstairs. "Are you packed?"

"I am!" I shout back. Kai has been in his room packing for the past few hours, so I'm assuming he's nearly done.

"Kai?" Mom calls, to which she gets no response. "Ry, check on your brother!"

Grumbling, I hop of my bed and head down the hall to Kai's bedroom. I knock on the door, waiting patiently instead of barging in. The door cracks open, barely revealing my younger brother's face.

"What?" He demands, and I raise an eyebrow at the attitude.

"Mom's been calling you," I tell him, crossing my arms. "Are you packed?"

Even though I can barely see his face, the blush that arises is visible as he says, "Yup."

"Liar."

"I'm not lying! I'm... almost packed."

"Define almost."

Reluctantly, Kai sighs and steps aside, opening his door wider. Peering into his room, I gape at the mess of clothes strewn around his room. A suitcase sits in the middle of his bed, completely empty.

"Our definitions of almost are very different," I scowl, walking into his room and sifting through the piles of clothes. "You've been locked in here for hours. What have you been doing in here?"

His blush deepens. "I've hit a growth spurt lately. I was trying on my clothes to see which ones still fit."

I look him up and down skeptically. "What growth spurt? You look as tiny as ever to me."

Kai puffs out his cheeks. "I'm at least an inch taller! My jeans are a bit shorter on me now."

"Cuff them and lets go," I roll my eyes. "Mom and dad want to leave before it gets dark. It's not safe to drive on these roads at night."

"Who even takes a road trip in the winter?" Kai throws his hands up.

"Don't question dad's logic, you'll lose every time. Now, hurry up and throw some clothes in your suitcase before mom comes up here and throws hands instead."

Sighing, Kai begins grabbing random items of clothes and stuffing them into his bag. Once his suitcase is closed and zipped, I head back to my room for my own bag before meeting my family in the living room.

My mom, Lisa, has her dark hair pulled up into a bun, showing off the soft angles of her face. Her eyes are a shade darker than mine; the same shade of dark brown that was passed down to Kai. My father, Christian, stands at her side while she goes over a checklist. His dark hair is cut close to his head, and I smile at the way his eyes continuously dart away from the checklist and to the clock. His eyes are dark gold, which was passed down to me. Both of them are bundled up with heavy coats, scarves, and gloves.

"Do you boys have everything?" Mom asks while looking at her checklist. "Toothbrushes?"

"Yup," Kai and I say in unison.

"Phone chargers?"

"Yup."

"Warm clothes?"

"Yup."

"Deodorant?"

"Yup."

"Lisa," dad cuts her off before she can continue down the list. "I'm sure they have everything they need. We need to get on the road before it gets any darker. We're already leaving later than I wanted to."