Culpables years later...

Chapter 6

Noah

One week later...

The vacation was over, and we were on the plane back to LA. It was very versatile. Nick and I didn't have much togetherness, Maggie had a falling out with her parents, and then our parents had a falling out, and towards the end, Andie caught a summer cold. So the holiday wasn't so relaxing. Nick and I got involved in the fight, of course. At the end we took care of Andie, who was sick. At least he could dive and saw turtles. Kindly enough, Anabell agreed to take Andie and Maggie with him, so the adults could have some time for themselves. The flight was relatively silent. Andrew slept, Maggie listened to music and didn't want to talk to anyone, and our parents kept quiet. My head rested on Nick's shoulder as I tried to sleep. There was nothing new from Michael to drive me nuts. We had decided to stay in our house for the time being because there was no sign of danger. Steve and Alex would stay with us, and someone else would be with our parents.

Nick seemed calm, but inside I could feel it was killing him as well as it was killing me. Back in LA, we said goodbye to each other and took taxis home. "I'm looking forward to home." I nodded to Nick and saw our house out the window. The driver unloaded our luggage, and while Nick was paying him, Andie and I went inside. "Shall we unpack our luggage and make dinner?" "Yes, but I want spaghetti. Please." "Don't you think soup would be better with your cold?" Andie shrugged along the shoulders. "Okay, but can I have some juice with that? Please, Mom." I nodded and gave him his little suitcase to unpack. "How could I miss being home?" Nick came in with our suitcases and hugged me from behind. "Oh freckles, wasn't it a nice holiday?" I shook my head laughing because we both knew it wasn't exactly nice. "How about we unpack our suitcases, make dinner, put Andrew to bed, and then we go pick up what was missing on holiday." Freckles you got something dirty on your mind?"

"With you? Always. Come on, let's empty the suitcases and wash the laundry. Or you'll do the laundry and I'll take care of the food?" "Only you can make me do the laundry." Smiling, we grabbed the suitcases and went into the bedroom. We put the suitcases down when I noticed something on the bed. There was a letter on our bed with our names on it. I typed Nick and pointed at the letter. Nick stepped up to the bed and picked it up. Hesitantly, he opened it, and we read it.

Nick and Noah, have you missed me? I've been thinking a long time about how to repay you for everything you've done to me. I also had an idea, and I have nice friends to help me. I've got lots of time and lots of plans. Let the games begin. I'm going to take everything you love. Nothing's going to stop me.

Best wishes Michael.

He was here. He was threatening us. He was going after our family. I looked at Nick clenching his hands. "We unpack our bags and pack things for the next few weeks. We're going to our parents' house. We're safer there, we can't stay here. I'll tell Andie to pack the things he needs. We'll be out of here in half an hour." That's all he said before he walked out the door. For five minutes, I froze. Only after a certain eternity could I move to pack our bags. Half an hour later, we were in the car on our way to our parents' house. Nick had already informed them we were coming.

I looked into the back of the car, where Andrew was sleeping peacefully. By the time we got to the house, our parents were already waiting for us. As we got out of the car, my mother gave me a hug and whispered reassuring things in my ear. Nick took Andie out of the car seat and carried him upstairs to his old room, where he could continue to sleep. Meanwhile, Mom and William helped us with the suitcases and brought them to my old room. Nick didn't like the house for all the memories, but it was the best place for safety. We sat down in the living room where Will brought us water and wine. "Noah, what happened? Nick just said it was an emergency." My mom looked worried and stroked my back. As I tried to say something back, N rubbed against my legs. I took N on my lap and scratched him. "We got home and were about to empty our suitcases when there was a letter on the bed from Michael. He threatened us and promised revenge, and he wants to take everything we love."

Will and my mom are worried. "He's messed with the wrong people, Noah! You're messing with one of us, you're messing with all of us. We're going to get through this as a family." What Will said warmed my heart. After all this time, we were finally a family without prejudice or anything like that. "What's going on?" Suddenly, Maggie stood at the door and looked at us. "I was in the backyard listening to music, and now you're all here?" My mom explained everything to Maggie, she came up to me on the sofa and hugged me, "I'm always here for you, Noah. You're one of the most important people in life." We hugged a little bit, and Nick came to us. We all sat in the living room together, planning the next few days. We were all hungry, and Nick called Officer Lopez to tell her everything, and she was going to come around in the morning and collect the letter. Maggie and our parents went to bed, and Nick and I stayed behind. Nick was changed. He barely looked me in the eye and seemed so angry. I took his glass out of his hand and put it on the table. He looked at me, and before he could say anything, I sat down on his lap. "Nick, please talk to me. You're scaring me. You've changed since the letter." He looked at me. He seemed to be struggling. "I like that I can't protect you. You're my life, and that son of a bitch is threatening us again! I couldn't protect you then, and I can't protect you now. You deserve better than me." Nick had tears in his eyes, and it broke my heart. "Nick, stop! You're the best we have! I'm so happy to have you and as the father of my child. I never thought you'd forgive me, but you did. I love you for that, and I'll always be by your side no matter what. We're going to get through this. Together. Both of us. In good times and bad. I love you."

Tears ran down Nick, and so did I. I kissed him dearly. He kissed me the way only he could. Demanding but loving. Our tongues struggled. "It's been a long day, we should go to sleep." "You're right, it's been a long day." He took my hand, and together we went to my old room and made our bed.

Nick's head rested on my chest. His steady breathing told me he was asleep. I scratched his head to sleep. I thought it sad to know that Nick felt that way about himself. He was my life and ours. I loved him so much. I would never let Michael break us up. Don't let him harm my family. He'd regret it. The only thing that bothered me was who was helping him? Who was going to help someone like that? His brother couldn't be. He wasn't in touch with him anymore. Only who was? Who was going to help a person like that?