Ace Huxley's Daughter

40

"You're sure they won't be home Pops?" I turned the key in the door, pushing it open and instantly being hit in the face with the cold air and Fresh Cotton scent mum practically coated this house with on a weekly basis. Grabbing Sonny's hand I pulled him into the house, closing the door as Buddy's barking started at the back of the house. "You have a dog?"

"German Shepard. Harmless, he actually won't even hurt his toys." Claws tapped across the tiled floor, the barking stopping and him sitting as he saw me. "Hi Buddy. Just me." I scratched his head, rubbing under his chin before sending him back to his bed and turning around to Sonny. He stood in the hall, looking around like he was lost. "You look like you've just been dropped into a padded room and you're looking for an escape route."

"This is the least you house I've ever seen in my entire life." I chuckled, grabbing his hand, and tugging him up the stairs.

"Wait until you see my room."

"Please tell me you've at least got some of your posters framed on the wall? Or photo- why is there literally no photos of anyone in this house?"

"David thinks it looks unprofessional when we host events here." Sonny scoffed. I pushed my doors open gesturing to my room and sure enough, the shock he'd had 5 minutes ago downstairs was doubled. "Look around, I'm just going to grab the bits I need and we can go after I've changed."

3 applications. 3 acceptances. We'd spent the whole night knuckling down which University I wanted to go with and the more we looked the more excited I got, anxiety running down the drain. We'd settled on RCA because it was a 20-minute walk away from dad's. I didn't intend on walking it every day but if I had it, it was miles better than the 30 minutes' drive in from here. It also meant Sonny was a 20-minute drive away as opposed to an hour if I stayed home. Moving in with him would have been an option. He made that clear. But the issue with that was then needing to move out when dad was on tour and it would just cause problems. This way I was in the best possible location.

It did however mean I now needed to move enough of my things to dads for me to get through a few days. I had nothing at dad's so after talking to him this morning, he's sent Hannah out with his card again in some chaotic rush to get everything I'd need. But there was things here that I still wanted. Jumpers and a few dresses I actually did like.

"OLIVE ARE YOU HOME?" Shit. Sonny looked at me from the bed as I put another dress into my bag and sighed.

"Yeah David, I'm up here. Is mum home?"

"She's coming in. Come down here. I think we need to talk about last night."

"I'm a little busy right now. I'll come down when I'm done." I finished what I was doing, putting haircare and skin care products into my bag. Chargers and laptop, makeup. Everything I needed. With a sigh, I watched Sonny carefully folding a handful of shirts I'd given him. I stepped back into my wardrobe. Tights, skirt, black turtleneck. A combination I hadn't worn before but it was cute and she couldn't complain about this at least. Though I was going to have to tell her I was moving to dad's because I was going back to uni to study art and I wasn't going to be going into law and oh by the way, this is my boyfriend who has had me non-stop screaming his name for the past 12 hours.

I spun in a circle for sun, his jaw clenching the smallest amount, smirk covering his face.

"Bend over." He pulled the bag onto his shoulder, following me out of the room in silence.

"Olive." Mum and David stood in the hall, arms crossed, mouths tight, glaring at Sonny. She looked at me and I swear, that vein in her head was about to pop. "Who's this?" Jumping off the dive board then.

"This is Emerson. He just came to help me with some stuff."

"What stuff?" I sighed.

"You're gonna hate this so much but I'm really excited about it so I am past caring. I'm going back to University. To the Royal College of Art because that's what I want to do. I don't want to be a lawyer; I would honestly rather eat my own arm. It's boring and I hate it. I never liked it." She paled. "Sonny is my boyfriend, I'm moving into dad's because it's literally around the corner from where my classes are going to be in Kensington. I'm not marrying Conrad. Sony punched him last night because he called me a whore. He's an ass. My asthma attack last month was from panicking about being stuck as a lawyer forever, it didn't come on over nothing, the idea of this life you've painted for me is what caused it."

"You are not going anywhere." David stepped around my mother. "Do you have any idea-"

"Let me stop you right there David." He shook his head in shock. "Don't you dare try and speak to me like I'm your child. I'm 21, I'm old enough to make my own decisions and I've made this one. 5 weeks I travelled around Europe and I have never known being happy like that. Not since you two fucked around behind my Dad's back. The past 3 weeks that I've been here, playing this little perfect happy family with big smiles. I've been laying in bed sobbing until 3am because I hate it. I hate who I am here. It's not me. I'm not me. You've got kids. Pass the business to the, sell it. I really don't care. I don't want it. I'm not taking it."

"Olive." I pulled on the door behind me. "Don't you dare-"

"Or what mum? What on earth are you going to do if I leave and do what I want for once rather than following your rules and your plan. One that you haven't even included me in deciding."

"Yes I have."

"No mum. Me just going along with it because you keep a roof over my head is not me agreeing. Dad's not paying you that money anymore. I don't have a reason to stay. I can have the roof and Sonny and I can paint to my heart's content there. What do I get here? Married to some guy who has marriage as his number one priority and love as his last? Really? Is that what you want from me? A marriage I'm not happy in? I'm 21. I've got my whole fucking life and you're trying to marry me off to the highest bidder. It's not happening. You can text me or call me when you've calmed down but I'm not changing my mind." I turned, grabbing Sonny's hand, and pulling him out of the house before they could say another thing. My heart pounding in my chest as I sat down in Sonny's car.

"You did so well Pops. I'm so proud of you." He pulled off and I sat back in the seat, forcing myself to breathe slowly. "Want to grab some food baby? Or do you just want to go home and sleep?"

"Sleep sounds good Sonny." I grabbed his hand, holding it against my cheek as I sought out some kind of comfort. "That was hard."

"I know baby. But you did so well. You stayed so calm and look, now everything is out there. No secrets, nothing you're hiding from them and you can get exactly what you want whenever you want it."

"I want ice cream."

"Then let's find you some ice cream and go back to mine so you can sleep. You didn't get any last night."

"Neither did you. You nap too."

"Pops-"

"I want you to nap with me." I pouted. "You said I get what I wanted Bubbles."

"How the hell am I supposed to say no when you're looking at me like that and calling me Bubbles?"