Where I Belong - Ace Merrill

Chapter 21

Ace, Harper and Eyeball were all soon happily tucking into their room service burger and chips as Harper introduced Eyeball to Netflix and the trip got settled to watch Stand By Me.

Except this time it had Harper in, as it had for her dad and Ace before, it seemed Harper was now a part of the exclusive cut.

"So that little shit had heard Billy and Charlie?!" Eyeball said through a mouthful of chips and pointing to Vern on the screen.

Harper nodded as she fed herself then Ace a couple of chips as they all lay lazily over the sofas.

"Where's all the rain?" Eyeball asked as they neared the end of the movie and he remembered how her appearance had caused a storm.

Harper and Ace shrugged in sync as she leant in to him watching as she kissed him on screen.

"You two are disgusting.." Eyeball grumbled as he swung his legs up and let them rest over Harper and Ace's.

"Jealous there Eyeball?" Ace said with a laugh.

Eyeball scoffed and shook his head. "Hell no, I got plenty of Eyeball girls right here!" He said happily, stretching his arms out.

Harper laughed and shook her head. "Well unfortunately for you I don't know any of them. I told you all before, I don't really have friends..."

"You got us?" Eyeball offered, seeing her expression change.

"You don't count Eyeball. Besides I meant like in my time." Harper mumbled as she twiddled her fingers in her lap.

"Sure you do, right?" Eyeball asked again as he looked over at Ace, who shrugged slightly looking back down at her.

"You got someone right? Like other than your parents?" Ace questioned.

Harper shook her head. "I got a few people I talk to online, tumblr and Wattpad and all that but no real life friends. I've never met them."

Ace and Eyeball exchanged a look.

"What's tumblr?"

"What's Wattpad?"

Their questions hit her at the same time. She laughed slightly as she brought her hands up to their faces. A hand on Ace's cheek and a hand on Eyeball's.

"Promise me I can come home with you both."

Ace and Eyeball exchanged another small look as Eyeball nodded slowly.

"You got a deal." He said with his cocky grin.

Harper turned to Ace and he smiled, nodding at her.

"We'll sort it with your parents tomorrow."

Harper beamed up at him as she leant forward and gently kissed his cheek before shuffling in her seat and snuggling into his chest.

"You're coming home with us Harper." Ace mumbled as his arm rested around her.

Eyeball nodded and grinned at him as he faced away from them and leant back against her as she snuggled into Ace.

Her arm moved over his chest as he reached his hand up and let her fingers play with his as she snuggled deeper into Ace, his arms remained protectively around her.

His lips softly kissed her forehead as he gently stroked her cheek.

"You're definitely coming home with us Harper. You're coming back where you belong." He mumbled as he kissed her head again before shutting his eyes and feeling her relax against him meant he could relax.

Harper's dad was about to go and remind Harper she was expected to sleep in her own room away from them as he stayed silent and watched the scene unfold.

His daughter had practically begged these two to take her back. He'd heard them promise she'd be going back home with them.

"We can't let her go James..."

He heard his wife speak up quietly from behind him.

"You heard her, she doesn't want to be here anymore." He mumbled as he slowly walked out into the living room, hearing soft snores and mumbles from his daughter and the cobras.

"She's our daughter James... we can't just let her go and never see her again!" Harper's mouth angrily whispered as she followed him out and looked down at her sleeping daughter.

Harper's dad sighed as he looked down at her.

"We let them go home tomorrow and then we take her home! It's a phase James, she'll grow out of it."

Harper's dad shook his head slightly as he looked down at her sleeping into Ace.

"It's not a phase... we either force her to stay or we let her go..."

Harper's mum choked back tears. "I don't like either of them options!" She continued to angrily whisper.

"What other choice do we have?!" He half snapped back at her, trying to keep quiet so they didn't wake up.

"If we forcibly send those boys back and force her to stay here she'll resent us for the rest of her lives and focus on nothing else but finding her way back to them!"

"And if we let her go we've lost our daughter!" Harper's mum snapped back, choosing to whisper as to not wake them.

Harper's dad sighed once again as he looked down at her.

"We established this... we lost her 70 years ago." He breathed out.

"Yet you want to lose her again?" Harper's mum whispered as she walked closer to him, looking down at her daughter cuddled up to both cobras.

"They make her happy sweetheart..." He whispered. "They do what we never could."

Harper's mum snapped her head at him, a tear now falling down her cheek.

"You're the one that introduced her to this stupid movie!" She snapped as she turned and stormed off, back to the bedroom.

Harper's dad sighed once more as he picked up a blanket from the end of the sofa and gently draped it over Harper. It half covered Ace and Eyeball.

Slowly and quietly he leant down and gently kissed his daughters head, she stirred slightly but relaxed instantly as Ace instinctively clenched her closer to him.

"Look after her boys..." he whispered. "She's all we have. So please, protect her as your own." He whispered as he gently stroked the cobra tattoo sign on her arm.

Ace once again clenched her tight to him as Eyeball instinctively tugged her arm closer to him.

"Save our little girl cobras."

His words barely heard as he gently brushed a hair from her face and walked off, following his wife into their bedroom.