Friction [Book 2]

-fueds-

The next morning, Julian drove himself and I out to the estate that I had inherited. Pete had gone down to the BBC studios to do some promotion for the band, interviews and such, and I didn't want to drag him along with us.

Before leaving, I had a long conversation with Julian about everything. Pete had left early after having a phone call with Bronx. Julian and I sat down in the large dining room at the marble topped table. He pulled out a dark glossed wooden box with rounded corners. He flicked the latch and lifted up the lid. Inside, I saw a pile of old photographs. Straight away, my eyes fell upon my father. His bright smile was gleaming and as Julian handed me the pictures one by one, I began to realise how alike they both were. Explaining through each picture, I was glad I had made the trip to the UK. Then, Julian showed me a picture of him, our parents and a baby Brad. It made my heart flutter, seeing them all together. It started to make me question why my parents had never mentioned Julian, at all. I felt sorry for him. I wanted him to know that he was now part of my family and he would never be considered otherwise. I most definitely wanted to spend more time with him and his family, that was for sure. I just hoped I meant the same to him.

Turning off the motorway, we drove for a few minutes through country roads. A large iron gate with peeling paint was hinged open and Julian's black Range Rover urged on over the bumpy gravel driveway.

Looking out of the window, I gazed out at the acres of fields that surrounded us. The grass was long and in need of a cut, but I wasn't complaining, the land was beautiful. You could see the tall peaks of buildings in the city from here, it was stunning already.

"It needs some new life. Paint and some tlc, but I'm sure it'll get it eventually." Julian said as we slowed down.

After a few moments of driving along stoney pathways, rows of trees either side began to appear. Following them down the drive, my eyes widened at the sight of a large, stone fountain in the centre of the wide driveway. Then, I saw the estate. It was a beautiful, light, stone built mansion. The doorway was dark wood, double, with two white pillars and a porch in need of a touch of paint. Large windows allowed gaping amounts of light to stream into the house, lifting up each and every room.

"Want to go inside?" Julian smiled, holding up the key to, what I guessed, was the front door.

"Yes, of course!"

I grinned and jumped out of the car, following him up the steps to the front door. With a stiff twist and a forceful shove, the door opened.

We were met with the hallway. It was floored with light sand wood and a split winding staircase that lead to different wings of the house. I looked to my left and took a few steps forward. The flooring continued and then turned into light tiles as we entered the large, spacious kitchen. The whole place needed renovating since there were no fitting apart from a central island that was falling apart.

Despite this, I could picture everything. With the whole house changed and adapted to just how I wanted it, it would be a dream to live in. But then I remembered that it wouldn't be as simple as that. It could never happen, at least, not for a good eight or so years.

We looked around the rest of the house and took a stroll around the acres of garden. The pool was covered in leaves and debris but the stone statues that surrounded it could easily make it grand again. I was falling in love with everything about this place, and it was mine.

After leaving the house and locking the gate, Julian gave me the keys. I slipped them into my purse and we headed into the city to have some lunch. Once we found a quiet corner cafe, Julian ordered us some food and I took a moment out of time to call Pete.

"So? What's it like?" was the first thing he said.

"Oh God, it was beautiful, stunning. Pete, you'd love it. I can just see us all living there but, I know we can't. At least, not for a few years."