You Again (Completed) ✔️

23.

I walk through the front door and hear my family in the kitchen. I move through the house quietly and stand next to the door to watch them.

They all smile and eat the pancakes Mom made for breakfast.

Mom leans across the table with a napkin in her hand and wipes Cole's face because the napkin has maple syrup on it.

She used to do that to me when I was a kid.

A smile spreads across Cole's face, and he says. "Thanks, Mom."

So, I have been replaced in my mother's heart by someone who doesn't deserve it.

I stay hidden a bit longer until I hear Mom say, "Has anyone seen Julia? Your father said she took off early this morning in his car."

"No, but since Dad isn't here anymore, I'd say she's back. She's probably in her room," Liam says. "After breakfast, I'm going to check on her."

I walk away from the door and head up to my bedroom.

At least they'll be able to find me here.

Pulling my phone out of my pocket, I look at the e-mail again, and a smile spreads.

I'm going to call you shortly. I just need to calm down.

Walking over to my closet, I pulled out my resume and looked it over. Everything I've done over the years, including my last job on Nova Island, is put in here.

The door to my bedroom opens, and I see my brother standing on the other side. "Are you coming downstairs?"

I shake my head. "I have something I need to do before I go down."

"Okay," he closes the door and walks over to the bed. "Are you okay with what you saw in the kitchen with Cole and Mom?"

"No, but what am I supposed to do? She treats me like a stranger instead of her daughter and treats Cole like her son. If she wants him to be her own son, she can have him. I'll pack my bags and stay where I originally wanted to. They still have my reservation booked."

Liam looks at the suitcase in the corner of my room. "It looks like you haven't unpacked since you got here."

"I haven't because I'm thinking of leaving the house and buying one of my own." Looking at the door, I add. "Besides, I've been forgotten and replaced by Mom. She can keep her adopted son. She just lost a daughter." Pointing at the door, I say. "You can leave, Liam."

He doesn't say anything as he walks to my door, opens it, and closes it before walking away.

I pulled my phone out of my bag and called an Uber. When I finished the call, I got a text with a map on it. It showed how far away the Uber was from Mom's house.

Grabbing my suitcases, I walk down the stairs and head to the front door. I close it behind me and walk over to the footpath. I sit down and wait for the car.

The front door opens, and I turn around to see my best friend with my brother. She says something to him before she walks over to me. "Where are you going?"

"I'm going to stay in the hotel where we were supposed to be before Mom told us to stay here."

"Okay," she stands up. "I'll get my stuff too."

I shake my head. "You don't have to come with me, Veronica. You can stay with my brother if you want?"

"Really?" A smile spreads across her face. I nod. She hugs me. "Thanks, Julia. I worried you'd want to separate your brother and me."

"I could never do that to my best friend. Besides, you deserve to be happy."

"You, too." She steps away from me. "Call me tomorrow, and we can hang out."

"Sure, I still have several great places to show you around town."

"Okay," she says as she walks back to the house. The front door opens, revealing another person.

Cole walks over to me and sits down. He pulls something out of his pocket and hands it to me. "I got this delivered recently. I was wondering if you'd go with me?"

I opened the envelope and saw an invitation to the ten-year reunion. "I'm not going, Cole. Ten years ago, I vowed never to return to the place that caused me many problems. Why on earth would you ask me to go with you? Especially when all your disciples follow you around like you're the master. Thanks, but no thanks." I gave him back the envelope.

The Uber pulls in front of me, and I grab my suitcases and put them in the trunk. "I hope you have fun with your adopted mother. Tell her that if she wants to talk to me, Veronica is the only way for her to do so." I climb into the car and shut the door.

The car pulls away from the house I grew up in. The driver looks at me. "Where to Miss?"

"Mason's Hotel."

A smile spreads across his face. "Ah, a dance hotel for a beautiful girl." He looks in the rearview mirror. "What's up with you and that fella I saw you with?"

I shake my head. "He's my nightmare, wrapped in a bottle.

He laughs. "Damn, I wish all my days could be like this. Sitting in a car with a beautiful woman, listening to what she has to say about a guy that I caught her with."

I don't want to discuss Cole or my family problems. All I want to do is find a bed and lie in it.

It doesn't take long before the car pulls in front of the hotel.

My luggage is pulled from the trunk and placed next to the door. The door opens, and a guy holds his hand out to me. I take it.

He has black hair and the bluest eyes I've ever seen. A smile spreads across his face. "You must be, Julia Harris. I heard so much about you from Mason. He told me that you'd be stopping by today."

Looking at the name tag, I see it says 'Josh.' "Are you going to show me to my room, Josh?"

"Sure," he grabs my bags and walks into the office. He tells me I need to leave a deposit just in case something breaks in the room. I leave him cash before he grabs the keys to the room. He leads me to a lift that has private access through a key. "This is the key you'll use to get into the lift. Tap it on the black device, and the lift will come to you." The door to the lift opens, and we step inside. "Press the floor you want, which will be the top, and then tap the key again. The lift will now take us to the floor we want."

The lift goes up, and it doesn't take long before the doors open, revealing a huge room.

As soon as we step into the room, there's the living room. The further we move in the room, I see the kitchen, which is an open space with a bar at the side. Behind the kitchen, there is a sliding glass door that leads to the balcony. Off to the right is the main en-suite room, and across from that is a single bedroom, with a bathroom in the room next to the door.

Josh places my bags in the room. "Have a good afternoon, Miss Harris." He leaves the key on the table for me and walks to the lift.

I climb on the bed and lie down. It doesn't take long before I fall asleep.