𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐁𝐮𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐟𝐥𝐲 || 𝐓𝐰𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭

Chapter 11

"I'm not going to miss Phoenix's heat that's for sure," I grumbled in annoyance as I shielded myself from the piercing Arizona sunlight. It was a searing hot dry day that made me miserable despite it being quite early in the morning.

Bella chuckled softly, "Until we arrive in Forks and you moan about missing the heat". I shrugged my shoulders but didn't disagree with my twin. Too hot, I complained. Too cold, I complained.

"Fair point," I agreed, "But it'll be nice to see Dad and the boys again".

"You just saw them all over your two-week holiday in December," Bella commented.

"Yeah," I whined, "But I can bake to my heart's content and know that there are three growing boys who will scoff all my food down. I have to be so cautious when cooking with just Dad or you, Mum, and Phil to make sure I don't waste food". Before Bella could reply, our Mum suddenly appeared behind us and wrapped her arms around the both of us.

"I'm going to miss you both so much!" she sobbed softly and squeezed us tightly.

I squeezed her arm in comfort, "We'll call every day. Won't we Bella?". Bella gave a tight-lipped smile but nodded in agreement.

"Guys, come on! I love you both but we got a plane to catch," Phil interrupted as he closed the boot of the car. Mum released us from her hug and wiped a few stray tears away. She looked down at her watch and it was comical how wide her eyes went.

"Oh shit," she cursed, "We gotta go!". Bella and I laughed as we watched Mum suddenly become an adult and hurry us into the car. Somehow, we managed to make it to the airport on time. I'm pretty sure Phil may have been speeding most of the way but he wasn't caught so technically, it never happened. Saying our goodbyes was hard but I was excited to see Dad and the boys again. Bella and I boarded the plane without any issues and we took our seats for the plane ride to Seattle.

"Come on Bella," I encouraged my twin, "It'll be fun living with Dad".

My sister didn't share my excitement, "It's different for you Lottie. You've seen Dad every Christmas while I haven't seen him in years, we only occasionally chat on the phone".

"May I remind you that you didn't want to come all those times," I replied as I fastened my seat belt.

Bella sighed as she too fastened her seat belt, "And leave Mum alone on Christmas without both daughters? Can you imagine how she would react?".

I cringed slightly as I saw my twin's point. Our Mum, while eccentric and I loved her for every bit of it, she would have made a massive deal about not having Christmas with at least one of us. When I first said I wanted to spend Christmas with our Dad, it was because Bella and I had missed spending the summer with him. I refused not to see him and while it caused a lot of waves, Mum eventually gave up and let me do so. It just sort of then became a thing. I would visit Dad for two weeks over Christmas and Bella would stay at home with Mum.

"It won't be as bad as your making things out to be," I assured Bella, "Dad loves us and he's been so happy that we're coming to stay with him". Bella gave another one of her famous tight-lipped smiles but didn't say anything in response.

'Well,' I thought miserably, 'This is going to be oh-so fun'. The plane trip zipped by and I had to contain my excitement as Bella and I disembarked. I eagerly surveyed the crowd trying to find our Dad and my face lit up when I spotted the lone police officer in the crowd.

"Dad!" I shouted as I dashed over to him. Dad grinned as he opened his arms and caught me in a hug.

"Good to see you kiddo," He smiled and patted me on the back several times. I looked over my shoulder and watched as Bella awkwardly approached us and nervously waved her hand in greeting. I pulled away from Dad's hug and watched in amusement as the two stuttered out a greeting and then proceeded to go quiet having no idea what to say.