The Unknown Tomlinson

Chapter 4

Chapter 4

The drive to Louis' parents' house was somewhere around twenty minutes to half an hour. On the way there, we just listened to music on the radio. The sixth song started playing when we pulled in front of the house.

Louis' parents' house looked just like ever other house on the street. It was a two-story house with a garage on the side. There were two bushes on either side of the front door. The stones leading to the door were very unique. They had many different colours all blended together. It was quite beautiful. When the boys and I approached the door, Louis turned the knob and shouted, "Honey, I'm home!"

The boys and I laughed as we entered the house after Louis. Before he introduced me to his family, Louis took me on a mini tour of the downstairs part of the house. The inside of the house was sort of like the inside of Louis' flat.

The living room had two couches and one recliner. There was a glass coffee table in the middle of the room. A flat screen TV was mounted above the mantel. And there were pictures of Louis' family everywhere.

The kitchen had a granite island in the middle of the room with a sink installed into it. All of the appliances were stainless steel. There was a blue back-splash under the dark wooden cabinets that reminded me of ocean waves.

The dining room was about three times the size of Louis'. The table was a dark wood color, just like the cabinets in the kitchen, with chairs to match. There was a china cabinet filled with fancy looking dishes behind the head of the table.

When the tour was finished with, Louis took me back into the living room where we left the boys along with his family. Louis had four little sisters, a mum, and a dad. I couldn't stop myself from wondering what having a little sister would be like. The girls all looked slightly alike. Two of them had the same colour eyes as Louis, and the other two had different shades of brown. Three of the girls had blond hair, and the other had brown hair. Louis' dad was starting to go gray. The features in his face were very similar to the girls. I can see where they got their looks from. As I looked over Louis' family, I couldn't help but notice his mum. Louis' mum looked oddly familiar. She had her son's blue eyes and brown hair. Louis looked almost exactly like her. Something about her seemed as if I've seen her at some point in my life. Maybe it's because I've seen pictures of her, but I think it might be more than that. I felt like I had a connection to her. I know that's a lot to say just by looking at her, but it's true. I felt like I knew her.

Louis introduced me one by one to his family. "These are my younger sisters. Charlotte, Felicite, Daisy, and Phoebe." The girls all smiled as Louis said their names. "Girls, this is Ellie."

The girl, who Louis introduced as Charlotte, stepped forward and shook my hand. "Hi. It's nice to meet you. I'm Charlotte, but you can call me Lottie."

She smiled as she stepped back and the girl next to her spoke. "I'm Felicite but please call me Fizzy." I smiled as Louis directed me to his parents.

"This is my step dad, Mark. Mark, this is Ellie." I smiled and shook Mark's hand. Louis moved on before I had a chance to say anything. "Mum, this is Ellie. Ellie, this is my mum, Johannah."

"It's nice to meet you, Mrs. Tomlinson. Thank you for having me over for dinner," I said with a smile.

"No need to thank me, Ellie. Your name is so pretty. It has a nice ring to it. And please dear, call me Jay," she said.

"Thank you, ma'am."

"It's almost five. Why don't we all go have dinner?" suggested Mark.

Everyone followed Mark into the dining room and took a seat around the table. I sat next to Harry and Louis again. Jay had prepared a wonderful meal. On the table there was a ham, a bowl of sweet corn, mashed potatoes, a bowl of apples, baked carrots, and a pitcher of iced tea. I filled my plate with food and started to bite into my apple.

"So, Ellie what's your family like?" asked Lottie. I was really getting tired of people asking me that question, but I didn't want to be rude. I saw Louis turn his head towards me. I nodded at him and answered Charlotte's question.

"Well, I live with my aunt in Doncaster. My cousin, Chris, goes to college in London. It's his second year there. So it's just me and my aunt for the moment."

"Where are your parents, hun?" asked Jay. I took a deep breath before answering her question.

"Well, um...you see...my parents died in a car crash seven years ago," I explained. I could tell Jay soon regretted her question.

"Oh my. I'm so sorry. I know what it's like to lose someone you love. It's pretty tough," Jay apologized. I nodded as I took a drink of my tea.

"Let's change the subject. Daisy and Phoebe have a birthday coming up soon. Isn't that right girls?" said Mark. The twins nodded and smiled.

"Yes, Daddy," confirmed Phoebe.

"When's your birthday, Ellie?" asked Daisy. I smiled at her before answering.

"May 18, 1996," I said as Jay started choking on her iced tea. Mark patted her on the back. Jay stopped choking and looked at me.

"Did you just say May 18?" she asked.

"Yes, ma'am," I said.

"Random question here. Doesn't have to do with anything, but by any chance were you adopted, Ellie?"

"Uh...yeah", I said confused, "my birth mother left me on the doorstep of the Doncaster Orphanage. I was adopted ten months later by my parents. No one knows who my birth mother is, though."

A look of pure shock made its way onto Jay's face. There was a slight look of fear in her eyes as well.

"Um...if you'll excuse me I think I just heard the oven go off," she said before leaving the table.

I turned to Louis with a confused look on my face. "What was that about?" I asked. He shrugged.

"I'm gonna go check on her. See if she's okay," he said before following after her.

Why did Jay react that way when I told them my birthday? She looked as if she saw a ghost. I was starting to get worried. The one question that kept coming back to me I didn't know the answer to.

How did Jay know I was adopted?