Beautifully Broken

TWO

~ARDEN~

"Arden, are you awake?" My Mother's voice echoed through the wood of my bedroom door, just moments before it opened and her head poked around the side, the light from the hallway illuminating her hair. I groaned away from the light, burying my head under the pile of pillows on my bed. If I was being honest I'd woken up about ten minutes ago when my phone had started ringing, to which I'd picked up to hear my cousin's chirpy voice through the line. Isla had always been a morning person, always ready to start the day by eight in the morning. But luckily over the years she'd learnt not to wake me before ten, especially on weekends. 

It was now about ten thirty, and even though I was still pretty tired, my stomach was growling at me to feed it.

I could hear my Mom tapping her foot against the wooden panels on my floor, and could imagine her watching me with her hands on her hips in the classic mom style. It made me smile against the mattress. "Arden, please get up, I've let you sleep in till ten thirty, now up." Her voice was soft and pleading, but I knew that the second I refused she'd turn to Stern-Mommy in a second flat. My mom never woke me up, unless I'd overslept my alarm on school days, but that rarely happened, which meant something was happening today. 

my brows pulled together as I strained my mind for the answer. Dear God, had I missed someone's birthday? Slowly, I pulled my head from the mountain of pillows and sat up, staring at mom. "So...that thing that was today? Not that I forgot, but it's still happening then...?" Even I knew that was a shitty cover-up, and from mom's strained sigh, she could tell it was too.

"Arden, I've been telling you about this for at least two weeks now," I nodded, trying to think of what she'd been talking about all week. It was hard, this had been the week from hell, and I could barely remember what I had for breakfast yesterday, let alone something that obviously didn't hold much meaning in my mind. Mom, who had been living with me for seventeen years now, could read my mind like an open, children's book. "My old friend from College, Jules, is moving next door today. And we are going over there to greet them. Now according to Jules, they'll be here in about half an hour." Now that seemed to ring a bell in the far distant corner of my mind. 

I swung my legs out of bed, knowing that there was no chance I was going back to sleep now, and stretched my legs above my head. Mom smiled, before walking over to the window, and without giving me a chance to cover my eyes, she threw the curtains open and let the horrid thing called 'sunlight' in. I yelped, and threw my arms up to cover my eyes. I heard mom laugh as her footsteps faded out of my room and down the stairs. 

I yawned again, and stood, moving down the hall to the bathroom to shower. I stood in front of the mirror above the sink, messy dark blond hair and sleepy grey eyes stared back. I got my looked from my mom, as did my little sister, but sadly my eyes were the exact copy of my father's. Mom said that she could see him looking back at her through them sometimes. I hated when she said that.

I stripped down as steam filled the room, and moaned as the hot water rushed over my shoulders. There were knots in my back that I didn't even know could be there.

After what seemed like hours in the shower, I turned the water off and padded back to my room in a towel. It was just Mom, Ella and I living here, so it's not like I had to worry about any males walking out from unexpected places and seeing me in just a towel. When I got back to my room, I couldn't help but laugh. Lying on my now made bed was a white and navy maxi dress. Obviously mom was excited, seeming as she never made my bed or set out clothes that she wanted me to wear. I could picture her trying to keep busy while waiting, humming and trying to act normal. After I'd slipped the dress on, and wrapped a thing brown belt I'd found shoved in my closet around my waist, a put some light make up on and headed down stairs.

I expected to find mom milling around the kitchen, or Ella coloring at the dining table, but instead there was just silence. I looked around, sticking my head into the lounge room, but the place was empty. I shrugged, and came back to the kitchen, walking to the fridge to get so OJ. That's when I saw it, a small yellow post-it stuck to the fridge. 

Arden,

Me and and Ella went over next door, get something to eat then come over. 

Wear the dress I put out, it'll look nice :)

I love you, Mom.

I smiled. Ever since dad had decided that screwing his bimbo secretary was better than having a family, she'd tried so hard to fill in that hole he'd left, even though she didn't have to. It wasn't her mess to clean. She wasn't the only who walked out without much of a second glance.

After draining a glass of OJ and stuffing myself with two pieces of toast, I slipped on the black ballet flats I'd left by the door last nice, and threw my still damp hair up into a messy bun, or a birds nest whichever worked, and slipped out the door. Thinking about last night reminded me of the guy who'd given me a ride home, and my still abandoned car. Even though the little Preis hatch-back had been a sweet-sixteenth present from my douche of a sperm dona, it was still the only way I had to get around and I didn't want it getting knocked off.

As I rounded the corner of the house, I saw them. On the edge of the neighbors house stood my mother, talking and laughing with a women around her age, with dark hair and an easy smile, and clutching mom's arm was Ella. The four yeah old's hair was bound in a cute little bun on the top of her head, held up with flower clips, and a white romper made her look like a little angel. She giggled and smiled at the attention she was getting, and as she hid shyly behind Mom, she saw me and instantly her eyes widened. "Arie!"

I scooped down to pick her up as she ran to me, her big brown eyes full of laughter as I tickled her. "Hello, little one," I smiled, and she wrapped her small chubby arms around my necks. With her clinging to me, I walked over to where Mom and her friend were watching us. Mom smiled and the thin crinkles around her eyes appeared. 

"Arden, this is Jules." She gestured with her hands, and the dark haired women, Jules, smiled and waved. I returned the smile over Ella's shoulder.

"It's so nice to meet you, finally. I've heard so much about you, you're mom is proud, and I can see why!" She laughed, and so did mom. Although it was kind of weird and embarrassing that mom talked about me, I was happy that mom had had a close friend through everything that had happened. "And you're so pretty! just like you're mom,"

"Oh, Jules," Mom laughed, clasping Jules arm lightly. I laughed politely, and looked down as Ella finally pulled back and looked at Jules, who noticed her gaze. 

"And yes, you're very pretty too, Ella, just like your big sis and mom," She chucked Ella under the chin, which caused Ella to giggle in my arms. I smiled again. 

"Speaking of my children, where's you're young man, Jules! I haven't see him since Arden was born," Mom exclaimed and from there the two women launched into a conversation I was no longer listening to, something on the road had caught my attention. Pulling up to the curb in front of our new neighbors house was a black Jeep, and I knew exactly who it belonged to. I was about to put Ella down and walk over to tell him to get lost, wondering what the hell he was doing back here, when Jules and my mom turned at the sound of his door opening.

I was hoping that I would be able to avoid telling mom that I'd gotten a ride home last night by some random guy, and instead say that Isla had dropped me off, but now all that was gone. My mum would find out that I'd been stupid enough to get into a stranger's car.

He rounded the car, and his gaze locked with mine. 

"Ah, Caylen, come and meet the neighbors." Jules Called across the yard to him, and for a minute confusion spread through my head like gas. How the hell did Jules know him? and what does she mean come meet the...That's when it all clicked and I understood everything, from Caylen behavior last night to Jules comment. Caylen seemed to read my mind.

He smirked.