Tangled Hearts.

~Chapter 37~

~Raelyn~

As the U-Haul rolled to a stop, I peered out the window at the towering structure before us. The house that I've dreamed of living in with my friends since they day we all became family that spring night.

"Well, here we are," I said with a mix of awe and nervous excitement. Blake pressed his face against the glass, his eyes wide.

"Can I go explore?" he asked, practically vibrating with energy.

"Sure, buddy, just stay where we can see you," Colby replied, ruffling Blake's hair as we all piled out of the vehicle. A lady who I assumed was the neighbor, wandered over, a warm smile on her face.

"Welcome to the neighborhood! I'm the landlord, Rory, you must be the new edition to the house!" she said, extending a hand.

I shook it gratefully. "Oh hi, yes I'm Raelyn, and this whirlwind is my son Blake. Thanks for letting me and Blake move in, he's really excited. My sister Isa will be joining too as soon as she graduates"

She gave me a warm smile and patted my arm. "Oh of course, someone has to keep those boys in line," I laughed as The boys, Sam, Jake, and Corey, emerged from the house.

Corey, lugging a cooler, grinned. "Brought some refreshments for the moving crew!"

As they all grabbed boxes out of the U-Haul, Rory leaned in and whispered to me, "You've got some great friends. You and your sister are gonna love it here,"

I smiled, watching as my friends carried our belongings inside. "I know, my friends the best."

"Hey Rae, you coming, we need some help over here," Colby shouted at me with a big smile.

"I'm coming," I looked back at Rory. "I would love to stay and chat, but I have to unpack, it was so nice meeting you Rory."

"Of course, sweetie, let me know if you ever need anything!"

"Oh, thank you!" I said as I walked over to the trap house crew. The girls were already busy helping Colby with the mountain of boxes and furniture from my old house. It was just Blake and me living there before, so moving everything was a bit of a task.

"Hey, look who finally decided to show up!" Sam yelled, grinning as he came over to give me a hug.

Jake and Corey followed, both of them making exaggerated gestures like they were about to send out a search party.

"Yeah, we were about to call in the cavalry," Corey joked, giving me a playful nudge. "What took you so long?"

"Oh, you know, just sweet-talking the landlord," I replied with a smirk, trying to keep the real reason under wraps for now.

Jake raised an eyebrow, clearly not buying it. "Sure, sure. I still don't get why you're moving in all of a sudden. Did Colby bribe you with something?"

I laughed, shaking my head. "Let's just say he made a very convincing argument."

Colby shot me a knowing look, and I could see Sam and the girls trying to hide their smiles. They knew the real reason I was moving in was because I was pregnant, but we wanted to keep it a surprise from Jake and Corey for a bit longer.

"Alright, enough chit-chat," Katrina said, clapping her hands together. "We've got a lot of stuff to move, and I'm not lifting all these boxes by myself."

"Yeah, come on, guys," Devyn added, already grabbing another box. "Less talking, more moving."

As we all got to work, the jokes and laughter continued. Corey tried to carry a box that was clearly too heavy for him, and we all burst out laughing when he nearly toppled over.