VAPOR

CHAPTER 24 - Ireland

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"I want you to have this." Aaron stopped right in front of the fireplace and grabbed his keychain with the dozen keys. I rose an eyebrow and was about to ask him what he meant. His keychain? His keys? His-

"This key." Oh.

Aaron struggled to free one of the keys from the chain but soon he succeed. He lightly grabbed my hand and put the silver key in it.

"Aaron-"

"I'm not asking you to move in with me." He said.

***

AARON

"So you're telling me that you are taking Lea to Ireland to meet your mom instead of me?" The harshness in Maxine voice was clear and her fists were clenched by her sides, lips pushed together into a thin line. "Look Aaron, don't get me wrong now, I'm very happy for you and Miss Hollywood. But after all I'm the one who has been here for you all these years, you barely know her." Max muttered under her breath, I shoved yet another white tee shirt into my suitcase. "It's not fair that you take her with instead of me,"

I sighed and sat down on the bed, looking at my best friend from across the room. She was sitting on the floor with her back resting against my wardrobe and legs crossed, her jet black hair was in a messy bun and the only piece of clothing she was wearing was a too big tee shirt and knee socks. "Lea was the one who made me understand that I need to go and see my mother, it's only fair to take her with."

"And why's that?" Maxine rose an eyebrow and popped a bubble gum bubble, she raised one of her sharp eyebrows and looked down at her nails. Probably admiring them. In my eyes they looked like the claws.

"She doesn't know where her mother lives, her father has completely shut her out of their lives. So Zaylea can't see her mother, I can, so I'm going to." I said, a bit too harshly. I stood up again and continued to pack my bag, in the corner of my eye I could see Maxine clench her jaw.

"I still don't understand why you are taking her with instead of me,"

"Maxine, please!" I rose my voice and spun around quickly to face her. "I'm taking Lea with me, okay?" A silence fell over us when I turned back around and angrily continued to shove piece of clothing into my bag. My head was aching after the lack of sleep and too much coffee and all I wished for was to go back to bed and wait until this nightmare was over.

Flying over to Ireland to meet my mother after seven years had seemed like a great idea before, but now when I was standing next to my half-packed suitcase I wasn't so sure of it. Just because I could fly over the ocean to see my mother it didn't mean that I needed to. I wasn't even sure that she wanted to see me.

I had ignored her calls since the day she left and hadn't regretted it until I read Zaylea's book. It made me feel guilty and I hated that. All Lea got was a letter from her mother once a year and here I was, the asshole that had been shutting out my own mother for seven years.

With a sigh I sat down next to Maxine. "I will call you every night and tell you what's going on,"

"A year ago you wouldn't have hesitated to take me with and if I would have told you back then that in the future you would take a girl with you, that you barely know, to meet your mother. You'd say that I was crazy."