Five Years Later

04 | Home sweet home

🎞2027 🎞

Just like I had suspected last night, I woke up this morning feeling the not so amazing effects of a hangover. On top of that, I am feeling emotionally drained. I think it must be thanks to the unplanned reunion with my ex-boyfriend from high school. It was like a switch flip on my mind, I wasn't the only one who noticed, my best friends and my cousin took notice of my mood change.

In order to distract me and help me feel better, instead of going to sleep. All four of us sat down on the couch in front of the television to watch the first movie of the Scream franchise, which is one of my favorites franchises to watch. I am a huge fan of scary movies, I love watching scary movies all year around without getting sick of watching them. It doesn't help that I was born on the month of Halloween.

I am happy to report that watching a scary movie helped me feel better. My twenty-two birthday celebration was a complete success and seeing my ex boyfriend from high school didn't change it.

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I ate a quick breakfast downstairs before I returned back to my room to take my suitcase to my car. My dog was following my every movie making sure that I didn't leave her behind.

"Are you ready to see your grandparents?" I spoke to her picking up my suitcase from the ground before I walked downstairs. In return she barked at me like she had understood what I told her.

"Okay, Pey, I am leaving to go to my parent's house." I announced to my best friend, putting the suitcase back on the ground. I set the suitcase by the front door before I walked back into the kitchen.

My best friend turned around to look at me, she was holding a pink mixing bowl in her hands. "Okay, Bree, I hope you have a good weekend with your parents. Please, tell them that I said hi."

I looked at my best friend, feeling my phone vibrating in my back pocket. "Thank you, Pey. And I will tell them, you know how much love to hear about you. Not my words, you're like a second daughter to them."

My best friend looked back at me with a sweet smile on her lips. "Miss Aubree Rose Emerson, don't you dare make me cry, my period is about to start soon, you know how emotional I get." Peyton told me as she pointed her index finger at me still holding the mixing bowl on her other hand.

I smiled at her, shaking my head lightly before returning to look at her. "What are you making there?" I asked her, pointing at the mixing bowl while I raised my eyebrow at her.

Peyton looked down at the mixing bowl for a few seconds until she returned to look at me. "I am making my delicious brownies. Don't worry, there is going to be a box for you in the refrigerator when you come back."

"Thank you, Pey, you're the best, I can't wait to return to eat a bite from your brownie. See you on Sunday's night." I told my best friend, before I walked out from the kitchen and entered back into the front hallway.

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I packed my car next to my father's car on the driveway, I clicked pause on the playlist that Peyton and I made a couple of years ago. I retrieved my keys from the ignition, unbuckled my seat belt and finally hopped down from my car. I closed the driver's door behind me as I began feeling nostalgic looking at the house I used to live in.

Before it was time to move away from my parent's house to start living with Peyton in our shared small house located near our university's campus. My parents have mentioned to me multiple times that I am always welcomed back home no matter what. As well, I could always stop anytime that I wanted it, after all this is my house too.

Even though I no longer live here, my parents didn't want to get rid of my former bedroom. For a matter of a fact, all these past five years, my former bedroom stayed the same. On the four walls, you can find Polaroid pictures from my highschool's years, the medals that I won during my track high school years and the decorations remained the same.

The only thing that is different are my clothes because like every other teenager I ended up outgrowing them so my parents and I ended up donating all of my clothes to a local charity.

During my university's years, my relationship with my parents only grew closer, indeed growing apart. The location and distance of my house and my parent's house plays a major part in it. On days where there is traffic it takes me about fifteen minutes to drive here. Today is not the case, it only took me ten minutes to arrive at my parent's house.

I moved my eyes away from my parent's house, taking a deep breath as I walked towards the passenger's door. At the sight of me, Luna, my dog started excitedly barking at me. I looked at her, opening up the door and placing her carefully on the ground so she could walk beside me to the front porch.

I locked my car before my dog and I started walking towards the front door and I rang the doorbell. Not even a minute later, the front door opened. Right behind the front door, both of my parents were standing with wide smiles on their faces.

"Aubree, honey, you're finally here!" My mother spoke first, happily wrapping her arms around me, not wasting any time to give me a hug. "Welcome back home!"

"Hey, mom, of course I am here." I spoke, matching her smile as I accepted her hug. Feels good to be back, I have missed you, mom."

"Honey, I missed you too." My mother said before she ended our hug.

"Hey sweetheart, I am so happy to see you." My father spoke, quickly, pulling me into his fatherly embrace.

I smiled, welcoming my father's hug as I laid my head down on his shoulder. "Hello, Dad, I am happy to see you too."

"Happy 22nd birthday, sweetheart." My father whispered into my ear before he gave me a kiss on the top of my head.

"Thank you dad." I told him before we ended our  hug. 

"Sweetheart, please come in." My father told me as he opened the door wider for me and Luna to enter into my childhood house.

"Honey, where is your stuff?" My mom asked me as she closed the front door behind us.

"Mom, my stuff in the car, I can get them later today. I replied to my mother's question, looking at her, still smiling wide.

"Aubree, sweetheart, how do you want to celebrate your birthday this weekend?" My father asked me as he stood beside my mother.

I began looking at my parents while I thought of an answer to my brother's question. "Well, what about we go to the movie theater to see a movie and then go grab a bite afterwards, like we have done in the past. How does that sound?"

"Sounds like the perfect plan, sweetheart." My father replied, looking back at me as he smiled brightly.

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Aubree's relationship with her parents is probably one of my favorites that I have written so far.