𝐂𝐀𝐋𝐀𝐌𝐈𝐓𝐘 → original

five

Amory and Nadia made their way out of the car, abandoning all thoughts of their bags and instead rushing up the steps of the porch and pulling open the front door to the house. Ophelia, Lou, Marc, and Caspar were all sitting around the living room, their individual bags in front of them as if they were waiting for something. When the door slid open, each of their heads shot up.

"Guys!" Ophelia was the first to yell, rushing forward. Amory couldn't help but think that she matched the speed and force of a linebacker. She jumped easily into his arms, stunning him for a moment before he wrapped his arms around her small frame.

While Ophelia and Amory hugged, Marc took the opportunity to ruffle Nadia's hair, which she had taken out of her bun. After she huffed and flipped her hair out of her face, her mock annoyance slid away before she pulled Marc into an embrace. He was much taller than her, and significantly more toned than she remembered. Once they pulled back, Marc hardly had a second to breathe before Amory was pulling him into a bone crushing hug.

The welcomes went on like that for a few minutes, everyone taking time to hug and add some small quip. Lou had been nervous to see Amory, perhaps even more nervous than she was to see Caspar. Some part of her feared that he would be too cool for her now, what with his verified checkmarks across all social media platforms and various doting fans who adored him for more than just his skills as a wide receiver. Still, Amory looked at her with no lost love and hugged her just the same as he always had.

"We were waiting, of course," Ophelia paused, after the revolving cycle of hugs was done. "We didn't want to pick rooms until you both were here."

There were three bedrooms and two bathrooms in the home. The master was on the main floor, right next to the biggest bathroom. Then there was a kitchen that led to a dining room, and to the right a living room. Before going upstairs, you could enter the second room at the bottom of the steps. Up the stairs led to the third bedroom, another living space, and the second bathroom. The two rooms on the first floor only had a queen bed in each, whereas the room upstairs held a bunkbed and two twin beds.

On their two spring break trips here, Vallie and Lou had taken the master while Ophelia and Nadia took the other room with the queen bed. That left the three boys to share the room upstairs, with Caspar and Marc each taking a twin bed and Amory alternating between the top and bottom bunk each night. It was a rather large bunk bed, but he was still a rather large guy, so he never could really get comfortable.

The cabin, if you could even call it that, was one that Vallie's grandfather had bought in the 70s and left to her father when he passed. The decorations and layout certainly matched the era it was bought in, with the Wright family unable to afford large-scale renovations that many other Poconos homeowners could. The hardwood floors were scratched and the rugs well worn, with wallpaper covering the bedrooms and colorful tiles lining the bathrooms. It had a sort of charm, though, and the family certainly kept it clean.

"Vallie and Tyler are taking the master, I assume." Amory spoke, a light edge to his voice. As he spoke her name out loud, he was struck with the realization he had not yet seen her.

At the sound of his name, Tyler emerged from the dining room to the living room in which they were all standing. He didn't waste time with pleasantries. From the moment he entered the room, Amory could feel him sizing him up.

"Yeah, we'll be in the master." Tyler answered, wiping his hands off on a tea towel. "But, uh, I'm sure they've told you."

"Told us what?" Nadia tilted her head to the side, eying Tyler for a moment before looking away. She was unfortunately cursed with the memory that Tyler had most certainly tried to hit on her at his own wedding.