Letters to Isabella

forty nine.

Ross' POV

"What?"

That was all I could respond with. 

My arm was wrapped protectively around Laura's waist, just like it had been when we were teenagers. 

This was supposed to be our day. Our announcement. Our gender reveal. 

It had all been ripped from us in a matter of seconds by one jackass: my father, who sadly knew how to make an entrance. 

"Didn't you hear me?" My father questioned with a half hearted chuckle. He had a glint of humour in his eyes which were grossly similar to mine. He copied my pose and proceeded to wrap his arm protectively around Diana with a smirk growing across his lips. "Diana and I are getting married." He paused and glanced over at my mom. "And all of you are invited."

My mom, who suddenly looked pale as a ghost, stood up and ran past my father and Diana to our upstairs bathroom. 

I couldn't believe that any of this was even happening. It felt like a nightmare. A nightmare that I really wanted to wake up from at any given moment. This was not the day that Laura and I had envisioned for ourselves and our family. It was supposed to be an intimate gathering for us to reveal the news of our soon to be family members but instead it had turned into an episode of Keeping Up With The Kardashians. Great.

"You're an asshole!" Rocky hissed to our father. He stood up from his place on our couch and shook his head in anger at them both. "What shitty timing to reveal something like that."

Before they could respond or argue back to him, Rocky ran up the stairs to console our mom who was now most likely crying her eyes out in our cramped bathroom which left Laura and I face to face with the happy couple.

My father took Diana by the hand and guided her into our living room and gestured to the now spare seat beside Rydel for her to sit down. "Ross, make me a scotch. No ice." He demanded, pulling up a chair for himself. "Oh, and get Diana a glass of champagne. It's all she'll drink."

Diana tucked a strand of her straight blonde hair behind her ear and shook her head gently towards me. She looked a lot like Adeline, almost too much like her. "I'll take a glass of wine." She pleaded. Her green eyes were wide with embarrassment. She then snapped her head in my father's direction and sighed. "Champagne isn't all I'll drink. It's all you'll order for me."

Damn did I believe that. Mark Lynch was a persistent and manipulative man. He always had been. If you asked him for world peace he'd give you a war. If you asked him for a homemade sandwich he'd buy you one from the store. There seriously is no in between when it comes to my father. He controls whoever he likes and sadly it seems as though Diana knows it.

My father brushed Diana's remark off and began to ask a series of questions to Rydel who seemed more than disinterested with what he was saying. 

"Laur," I murmur into her ear. She nods her head, not turning to look at me. "can you give them a drink each to keep them quiet? I'm going to check on my mom."

She nodded again and brushed her fingertips across my hand. "Sure honey."

We both left our extremely uncomfortable living room at the same time and whilst Laura turned into the kitchen I made a quick turn to our staircase. 

I could hear the faint crying coming from our bathroom as I approached the door and frowned sadly to myself. 

No matter how my father treated my mother or how she feels about him at this moment in time, it doesn't take away the fact that they were married for a good portion of their lives and had five children between them. Having to see your ex partner with someone else can't be easy. I could only pray that I'd never have to face that day. Laura and our children mean entirely too much to me for us to walk away from it all and start from scratch with someone new.