The Final Leg - Book 4

Chapter 11

Bit of an action chapter. i love writing those -.-

"How was your day, dear?" Mother asks from the upper end of the table, forking at her lean chicken rather peckish. I stared, at the small amount of chicken and vegetables on her plate – recognising that her meal was different compared to Dad's and my own. I guess she was trying one of those silly diets again where all she lost was her self-confidence – which is utterly hard for a woman like her.

"Err alright." I murmur out, reaching forward to grab my water.

"What did you do?" She hums and I press a shoulder forward at the awkward small talk.

"I went out for lunch with Liam and then I came home n' slept I guess." I say quietly toward my plate.

"That's nice. How's Liam these days?" She asks me.

"Really happy since the wedding. They both are." I explain and she nods once more, folding her hands over as she leans her elbows on the table.

"Bobby – how was work?" She asks Dad and I glance up at him, seeing that his concentration was anywhere but at the table.

"Very, very good." He sighs turning to us. "This next month is going to be wonderful. I'll be able to put a higher bid on the new lake house."

"New lake house?" I ask, head cocked to the side.

"Summer is coming up Niall. Your father and I always spend time at the beach house and we just fell in love with Anne's lake house. It's time for something different." She smiles and I roll my eyes, sipping from my glass.

"Is something wrong?"

"Why does everything have to be materialistic?" I ask gently. "I-I mean, not many people have the money for a house even half this size... why do we need another property?"

They both seemed rather stunned – dad more than mum which was even more surprising. I've come to appreciate things a little more since being around the rougher side of Bradford. Nobody there was to be looked down upon. I can see right through the tough persona on a lot of people now. I finally get it.

"Don't you want something left when your father and I go?" Mum asks me and I sigh at the whole 'guilt trip' she used to pull on me when I was younger. Although then, I fell right into it.

"Mum you never visit the beach house, ever, you're not gonna' visit this house either." I sigh, pinching the bridge of my nose.

"Since when did you become ungrateful?" She asks me.

"Never. I just grew up." I grunt.

"Niall, come on." Dad huffs. "Just forget about it. It's my money that's going toward it. Not yours."

I sigh, staring back at my meal which was only half eaten. I didn't have the energy to eat the rest. In fact, I was completely turned off of eating and desired instead to continue my day which consisted of sleeping away my troubles.

"Speaking of money," he then perks up, "how are you going at work?"

I swear in both houses I've lived in; it's all about money. In Zayn's, it's about who owes who but here, it's about splashing it around and looking down on those who don't have enough of it.

"Good thank you." I sigh tiredly. "I'm due to go back in a couple of days."

"You have no aspirations Niall." He says, a little harder this time.

"What?"

"You don't do anything at your job. You don't have a good income, and you're not doing anything for yourself by writing about someone else." He says, head tilted to the side.