Friends Don't

Chapter Forty

It's been a long wait, so thank you so much to everyone who is reading this story!

* * * *

It's all I could think about. What could they possibly want us to come visit them for?

I asked Aaron if they said the reason for this family get together and he said he didn't know. I guess keeping that a secret was something I should have expected.

It's been two days since, and I still haven't made up my mind whether or not I want to go. I don't want to go alone, but I know the invite didn't include Grayson.

Heck, I'm sure they've pushed Grayson so far out of their minds they've forgotten about his existence.

"So, what's stopping you from going?" Lana asked me.

We were chilling together on the couch watching some movie that neither of us have seen before. Well, I wasn't paying much attention to it. How could I with questions of what my parents could want us to get together for running through my head?

"It's my parents."

"Well, yeah," she nodded in agreement, "but your brother will be there, too, so it's not like you're going to be alone."

It's true. He would be there, he told me him and his fiancée and son would be going. I still didn't know why he gave in to them so easily at times. He did move across the country to get away from them.

"Just bring Grayson with you."

My head shot from the television screen to her, so quickly I could have pulled a muscle. "Do you know how pissed my mother would be if I brought him?"

"Yeah." A small grin pulled at her lips.

"Lana," I said in disbelief. She was starting to act like me.

"I know, I know," she began as the small chuckle she held back disappeared. "Look, I'm not one to go around starting things, but it's your mother, and we all know how she is."

So many people know how she is. So many know how she's treated Aaron and me, but I guess when you're as wealthy as my parents are then you can get away with anything. Who would want to piss off some rich people and miss their chance of coming into some wealth themselves? Or more wealth I should say. Most people who agree with my parents have just as much money, if not more.

Later that night it was just Grayson and me. Lana had left with Derek not long after him and Grayson got back from the gym.

I was lying in bed letting my conversation with Lana replay in my head. It was quiet until Grayson interrupted my thoughts.

"Is everything okay? You've been really quiet tonight."

I continued to stare up at the ceiling but answered him. "It's just my parents wanting Aaron and me to come visit. I wonder what for."

He pulled me into him. "You don't have to go if you don't want to, you know."

"I know. I don't want to," I paused, "not really, but part of me does just because I want to know why."

"Well, I'm here for you with whatever you choose to do."

I pulled away from him just enough to lift my head up and look at him. "So, you'll go with me?"

"That's not exactly what I said."

"But you could go with me."

He sighed. "Babe, you know how much your parents don't like me, especially your mother."

I nodded. "I know, but I want you to be there with me, too."

It took some convincing, but eventually he did agree to go with me. I don't think he was too happy about it, but he said he would do it for me.

I know bringing him would be a bad idea, but I didn't want to go without him, and the curiosity of this visit was nagging at me too much to stay home.

Of course, I wasn't going to tell my parents that he was coming with me. I thought it would be best left a surprise, one they wouldn't be too excited about, at least not my mother, but oh well. If my parents wanted me in their lives then they would just have to accept the fact that Grayson was a part of mine, and I had no intentions of letting him go just to please them.

****

The clock read six in the morning and I was just finishing up a quick piece of toast before grabbing my purse to head out the door. Grayson had just loaded up the car with our suitcases and was waiting on me in the car.

It was early, but we needed to leave early to make it to my parent's house around lunchtime. That was when they expected us to arrive and we didn't want to disappoint my dear old mother.

I had text Susan the night before to let her know the plan and she was more than fine with me leaving on such short notice.

Before I shoved my phone into my purse not wanting to be bothered by it, I sent a quick text to Aaron to let him know we were on our way and our estimated time of arrival.

Aaron was already near my parent's place, staying in a hotel with Vivian and baby Liam. The two had flown in last night. There was plenty of room at my parent's house for them to stay, but they didn't want to stay any longer than they needed to, and we would already all be spending two nights there together.

My phone dinged and I pulled it out of my purse to check it, knowing full well it would be Aaron, and smiled at the text before shoving it back into my purse.

Hurry up and don't leave me alone with them for too long

He would come to my rescue any time I needed him when we were younger all the way up until he moved. Even now, living thousands of miles apart I know he would race to help me if I needed him to. We've always been there for each other, him for me more than I was for him, but that's just how it is. He's the older, stronger, most times wiser, brother.

I didn't want to go see my parents, but Aaron would be there and he was the biggest reason I did decide to go. I couldn't leave him to suffer alone.

Of course, he had his own backup, Vivian, so I had to bring my own, Grayson.

Our parents didn't like either of them very much, something the two would have in common, but which one they liked the least? Well, we would just have to wait and find out.