The first thing Aimee's mum had done was insist on making a cup of tea. The exact same thing she'd done following every family crisis for as long as Aimee could remember.
It gave a brief reprieve and a bit of breathing space for Aimee while her parents were in the kitchen doing this, giving her a minute to try and compose some kind of explanation.
As her parents came back in and handed her a mug before they sat down, Aimee couldn't help but notice the picture above the fireplace, next to her sisters wedding photos.
"You kept it up there." Aimee said softly, pointing to her graduation photo. She was in the middle, her parents either side and her sister on the end, beaming at the camera. She'd found out the day before she'd got the job with McLaren and she didn't think she'd ever felt happier than she had that day.
If only she'd known what was to follow.
"Of course we did, you're our daughter." Her Mum said softly.
"I'm so sorry, for everything." Aimee choked out. It was now or never. She had to tell them. "I know I can't take it back, I really wish I could. But I never intended not to turn up to Sophie's wedding, or Nan's funeral..." she trailed off. She could list the hundred other family events Tom had stopped her going to but they'd be there all night.
"We shouldn't have said what we did." Aimee's dad offered. "We were angry. We didn't expect you to take it so literally and just never come back to see us again."
"It wasn't all you." Aimee sighed. "Things with Tom were... well they have been... it wasn't that I didn't want to be there. I was pleading with him to let me go, but he..." she couldn't actually find the words to say it out loud. She'd been saved from having to do the explaining with Lando because he'd figured it out himself. How was she going to explain this to her parents?
"You and Tom aren't still together?" Her mum asked curiously. "When did that happen?"
"Er... a couple of months ago." Aimee mumbled, taking an sip of her tea to buy herself for a minute. "He uh... he had a bit of a drinking problem and..." her eyes filled with tears and she cursed herself for not being able to speak a single sentence.
The whole thing would probably be a lot less painful for all of them if she just outright told them. And yet she still couldn't find the words. It was like saying it out loud made it all the more real somehow. Confirmed that it had all really happened.
"And..?" Her mum prompted.
Aimee took another sip of her tea. "He was drinking and he got violent." She eventually managed to force the words out, looking down at the floor. "I couldn't come to Sophie's wedding because I was in hospital. He didn't want me to go and when I tried to argue with him about it he pushed me down the stairs and broke my ribs."
Her voice was flat, emotionless and detached. It was the only way she was going to get through this.
"When I called you that day and you told me you'd never forgive me... I was calling you from the hospital." Aimee continued, shaking her head at her mums horrified expression. "It's okay, it's not your fault. You weren't to know." She reassured them.
"How long was this going on for?" Her Dad asked quietly.
"Pretty much as soon as we moved in together it started." Aimee said quietly, still unable to look at either of them. "Every time I tried to leave or I'd think about trying to tell someone he'd just... and then after what happened with the wedding and us arguing... I didn't have anywhere to go so I stayed."
"What changed?" Her mum asked softly.
Aimee couldn't help but smile fondly as she thought about Lando and the way he'd unknowingly rescued her. "Lando. I don't know why but he was the first person to pay enough attention to realise something was going on. Then suddenly I had a friend, someone to call when it all went to shit... he saved my life."
"And where is he now?" Her dad asked. "Because I'd like to thank him for being there for you when we should've been."
"He uh... I... I did something stupid."
Aimee choked out through tears. She placed her mug down on the coffee table and buried her face in her hands. The weight of what she'd done, the decision she'd made, and the fact she'd never see Lando again had fully hit her now.
"Oh sweetheart." Her mum crossed the room and wrapped her in the tightest hug, like she was making up for all the lost time. "I'm sure whatever it is we can fix it. He'll understand."
"I don't think I can fix it this time." Aimee choked out. "I don't deserve him. He's been nothing but good to me and I just... I'm a mess. He deserves better."
"That's absolute nonsense and I think you know that." Her mum scolded, her dad nodding in agreement. "It might not be easy, but you'll get there. And we're right here with you this time, I promise."
Aimee sunk back into her mother's arms. It was so incredibly comforting, and she couldn't believe how much she'd missed her parents. She'd spent the years since they'd last spoken trying to convince herself that it was fine, that she was better off without them.
How things might've been different if she'd realised she could've just come home a couple of years ago, she'd never know. But she was thankful that she had found her way back now.
It would give her time to get her head together and think about what she was going to do next.
"I'm going to go get your old room ready for you kid." Her Dad said softly, getting up and leaving her alone with her mum.
"I'll call Sophie in the morning and explain." Her mum reassured. "She'll understand. It'll all be okay, Aim's. I know it doesn't feel like it now, but it will. I promise."
"I love him, Mum." Aimee whispered. "I love him and I was so scared after everything that happened... and now he's never going to forgive me."
YOU ARE READING
Stay With Me- Lando Norris
Fanfiction*Completed* After discovering that one of his coworkers is in a desperate situation, Lando makes it his mission to try and help her. Except she doesn't want his help, and does everything she can to push him away.
