Struck

~ Chapter 6 ~

I grunted as I tossed my last bag into the back of the large black SUV, the warm autumn sun beating down on me. Asher closed the hatch door and as I stepped back Ryker wrapped his arm around my shoulder. My brothers had refused to let me leave them behind, claiming that they couldn't live without me. Personally, I thought they were coming because they knew that I wouldn't survive without them. They were my rock and they knew it. 

"I guess it's finally time to say goodbye to this place." Ashton said, turning to look up at our house. I turned with him, ready to say bye to what I had never really been able to call my home. 

The massive house stared back at me, sun glinting off the dozens of huge windows covering the front. It was all angles and sharp corners, the very definition of a modern house. My dad had renovated it multiple times over the years in order to keep up his perfect wealthy look. I loved the look of the house, but I hated that it was my fathers and that he had made me feel like a stranger in my own home. 

Which is exactly why I wasn't about to shed a tear over living somewhere else.

A shadow moving across the windows drew my attention to the upper right corner of the house. My dad's large figure stood in front of the window, his hands shoved in his pockets as he stared down at us. Though it was still quite far away, I was able to make out the details of his face and if I didn't know any better I would have said that he looked almost remorseful. But that couldn't have been the case, I was just searching and hoping for something that I knew could never happen. 

He waved down at us, posture stiff and uncomfortable, and all my brothers waved back. My arms remained firmly at my side as I stared up at him, face emotionless. I would not let him see that even though I hated him 90% of the time, I felt still like he was stabbing me in the heart yet again. 

He hadn't even bothered to come and say goodbye in person. 

I turned sharply on my heel, not looking back as I climbed into back seat of the SUV. He wasn't worth this hurt, this pain. I had cried enough over the past few years and I was done. Done crying, done wallowing, done living in the past.

All I had was the future and I was going to make it mine.

********

The airport was too crowded. People gathered everywhere, blocking doors and hallways and making it extremely difficult to navigate. I was about ready to cut power to the building and watch everybody panic but I knew that was both mean and would likely result in me getting trampled.

Ryker carved a path through one of the crowds, the rest of us trailing closely behind him with our luggage in tow. His larger size made it easy for him to push people aside, which is why we had made him go first. We turned a corner to see the exit, large glass windows letting in the streetlights. I began scanning the room, looking for Jasper and his family. 

A large grin stretched across my face when I spotted them, immediately breaking into a run. I hadn't seen Jasper in years and he had been my best friend before his family had moved to Vancouver. 

He must have heard my thundering footsteps because he turned away from his family and smiled when his eyes landed on me.

"Ember!" His arms wound around me as I pulled him into a hug. He picked me up and twirled me around, arms crushing me to his chest and squeezing the air out of my lungs. I didn't mind though, I had missed the comfort his hugs brought. 

Brushing some of my hair out of my eyes once he set me down, I smiled up at him. "I missed you so much Jasper."

Jasper's eyes twinkled, "I missed you too." It felt like a life time ago that I had last seen him. He had matured so much and dare I say it, he was attractive.