**Claire POV**
Reneé wrapped on Mean Girls yesterday, which means our time in New Jersey has come to an end and it's time for us to up and move again. Our two months here flew by, maybe because whenever Reneé wasn't shooting we weren't actually here.
We're seated together on the floor of our closet, once again folding our clothes and packing them into boxes.
"I am not ready to be back in LA" I whine, thinking about unpacking all this stuff again next week.
"Me either" Reneé sighs.
"At least we'll be in your apartment though, it's way nicer than mine was" I remind myself, optimistically.
"Yeahhhhh" her voice trails off "about that"
"What do you mean?" my eyes widen at her.
"So, I bought a house"
"What? Babe, what! Without looking at it?" I exclaim.
"Adam went and looked at it, he facetimed me. I loved it so I put in an offer and I closed on it last week"
"Why didn't you tell me that?"
"Because I wanted to surprise you. Guess what it has"
"A pool?" I question excitedly. I fucking LOVE a pool.
"AND a hot tub" she smirks "wanna see the pictures?"
"Uhhhh, yeah" I say, my voice filled with anticipation to see our new house. Well, Reneé's new house. It's kind of mine too, right?
Reneé scrolls through the photos, proudly showing me her new place. There are tons of huge windows and blonde wood, the largest master closet I've ever seen. Not only is there a pool and a hot tub, but a big outdoor kitchen as well.
"Babe, it's so pretty" I hum as she continues swiping, showing me the master bedroom and bathroom.
"Isn't it?" she smiles, I can tell she's so proud of herself. I'm proud of her too.
"I feel like a real fucking adult, you got me acting so grown up" she grins, nudging me gently on the shoulder and falling into me.
"Do you think we could, uhhhh" I stutter, "stop in Indiana on our way home for a couple days?"
"Claire Marie Wilson, are you going to finally let me meet your family?" she smiles at me and her jaw drops. She has been asking for months, every time my mom calls and asks when I'm coming back to visit.
"I mean, it has been a whole year now" I start "so I think it's probably time"
"Fucking finally" she gushes.
I think back to our trip visiting Reneé's family. Their beautiful house in the cul-de-sac, her little brothers brand new Bronco parked in the driveway, her mom's designer purses. I know Reneé's family has money, I know she grew up with money. With Reneé's career taking off now, they have even more of it. It hasn't been the same for me and that's okay. I feel slightly embarrassed to bring her home, but I feel guilty for feeling that way. I know my mom did the best she could with what she had, but things were really tough for a few years after my dad died. They are better off now and they've since moved into my step dads house. But still, it does not compare to the lifestyle Reneé is used to.
"We can stay in a hotel though, we don't have to stay at the house" I tell her, hoping she will just agree with me and not question. I don't have a bedroom in their house since I never actually lived there, my mom moved in with Rod shortly after I moved to LA.
"Okay babe, whatever you wanna do. Just tell me what hotel to book and I'll take care of it"
"Okay, I'm gonna call my mom and tell her we'll be there on Saturday then?" I say, standing up to go find my phone, wherever I left it.
"I'm so excited!" I hear her yell from the closet as I dial my mom.
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A Week Later
Reneé POV
The movers came last night to move the last of our things back to our new house in LA. The apartment is empty and Claire and I have a flight to Indiana in a few hours. I am finally going to meet her family and I am so excited. She insisted on us staying at a hotel because she doesn't have a bedroom in the new house and she doesn't want to sleep in the basement on an air mattress. I think the hotel will be good, that way we have somewhere to escape if things go south, although I can't imagine they will. I'm typically pretty good with parents and if her family is anything like her, we will get along just fine.
"Ready? she asks, grabbing the keys to our rental car. Having the driver was only fun for the first few weeks, then it got really annoying having to call him every time we wanted to go somewhere. So, we have been renting a Tesla model Y ever since, Claire's pick. Definitely would not have been my pick.
"Yup" I tell her, slipping on my backpack and following her out the door with my suitcase.
"Goodbye, New Jersey" Claire jokes as she locks the door behind us. I am going to miss it.
We walk downstairs, putting our things in the trunk and slipping into the front seat of the car. I start the car and go to turn on some music but my phone isn't in my pocket. I pat my pockets aggressively when I realize and Claire looks over at me.
"Shit baby, I think I left my phone in the bathroom. I have to go back up" I tell her as I put the car back in park.
"Okay, make sure you lock the door"
"I will" I reply, hopping out of the drivers seat and pulling my purse over my shoulder. I head back up the elevator, pulling out my phone when someone else enters behind me. I didn't forget my phone, I totally lied. I unlock the door to our place for the last time and walk into the kitchen. I pull myself up onto the countertop to reach high above the cabinets to grab the last thing, the one thing I cannot forget.
The ring.
**Author's Note**
Little cliffhanger for the weekend, do you hate me?
Thanks for reading :)
xoxo
M
