Hollywood and Vines (A One Direction Fanfic)

Chapter 1 - Ethan Watson

June 4

"Holly!  Come on, honey!  Mr. Watson is waiting!"  mom called chirpily from downstairs.

I turned away from the mirror and wobbled down the steps, my arms leaning clumsily against the banister in order to support some of the weight from my body.  Arriving at the bottom of the steps, I eyed my mom as she dug in her purse for her keys.  

"We're going now?"

"Yes," she grinned with those newly whitened teeth at me.  She tucked her blond bangs behind her ear.  "What is going on with your hair, girlfriend?"

"I need to shower."

Mom frowned briefly.  "Is something wrong, honey?  Aren't you excited to take a look at the convertible?"

I rubbed my arm over my eyes.  "Yeah . . . I was just . . . I just got up."

"How late did you stay up last night?  You didn't even remove your makeup.  You have mascara all over your face "

"Eh . . . two?"  I rubbed my face and stared at my hands to find them smudged with black.

"Why so late?  Were you on the phone with Nick?"

"Mom," I breathed.  "Nick and I broke up two months ago."

Mom nodded, a sense of remembrance sparking in her eyes.  "Oh, that's right, that's right."

The silence flooding the air was uncomfortable as I dozed off out the window.  It was so typical of mom to forget my exes.

"Well, just throw your hair up into a messy bun," she exclaimed at last, waving her hand in the air.  "You have a hair appointment after anyways."

"Kay," I mumbled sleepily.  "I need to brush my teeth."

"Okay, honey.  I'll be in the car."

It was probably fifteen more minutes before I was in the car.  Mom didn't question me, though.  Neither of us were the type to leave the house without makeup, plus, I didn't want to be checking out my new vehicle in clothes I would classify as bummish.  A man was selling us this car, and if we wanted to get a decent deal, I had no choice but to attract a little attention.  Luckily, though, I don't have to try too hard.  Fifteen minutes of primping will be beneficial enough.

About ten minutes had passed before we arrived at our destination.  We pulled into the driveway of  a house about the size of our own.  Though it was large and beautiful just as our was, this one was more beachy.  A man stepped out the front door and smiled tightly as he approached us.  Mom and I slipped out of the car to greet him.

"Hi, I'm Ethan Watson.  It's nice to meet you"

"It's nice to meet you, too," Mom brightened, reaching for his hand.  "I'm Hilary Bradford, and this is my daughter, Holly."

The two of them stood shaking hands for a mysteriously long time.  Observing my mom closely, I could see that her eyes had become starry eyed.  It's the look she gets when she finds someone she thinks if extremely attractive.  Not that she's told me this, of course, but that was the exact look that sparked in her eyes the moment she met my step-dad who coincidentally is not married to her anymore.

"How are you, Holly?"  Ethan asked.  He did not remove his gaze from Mom and instead stared at her with the same mesmerized demeanor.

"Good," I muttered.

Mr. Watson shook his head as if to return himself to reality and clapped his hands together.  "Alright, well, her she is."  He opened his hands again and pointed to the shiny red convertible that rested near the top of the driveway.