On The Run

Chapter 37

Chapter 37

Family is one of nature's masterpieces.
- George Santayana

( her tattoos on her upper back(right) and lower back(left) ^^^)

Stepping into Laura's house, I can't help but be stunned. She lives in a beautiful house with modern, homely decorations everywhere. I look at Laura with my mouth open. "You have a gorgeous house." I tell her as she smiles at me.

"Thank you, now come on. I forgot to tell y'all that my family is here. Come meet them." She turns around and walks down a hallway. It leads to a living room that has voices coming out of it. "Laura, did you get her?" I hear a man's voice before I step into the room. I hear Laura laugh just as I turn the corner. 

An older man looks at me and the boys before looking back at Laura. "Babe, is she the one you were talking about?" He asks Laura as she sets Isabella down on the couch. I think this is the husband she was talking about, I thought as Laura answers his question. "Yes, this Kate. The girl I helped back home." She tells him going up to him and kisses him on the cheek and hugs him.

He looks up at me. "You look just like she described you, beautiful. I've never seen my wife so happy until she met you. It's like she saw something in you, and that baffled me, but now I see it, and I'm glad my daughter and wife kept in contact with you." He tells me, holding out his hand towards me. I take it and go to shake it, but he pulls me into a hug. "She told me what happened to your parents, and I'd like to say that you are welcomed to come here anytime. I heard so much about you from my wife and daughter that you are like family now." He tells me, pulling back and looking at the boys.

He stares at them for a second before looking at me. "Who are these boys? Your friends?" He asks me. I go to respond when I hear a baby cry that sounds familiar.

"I'm so sorry, Uncle. Making her food took longer than I thought." I hear a woman's voice that sounds familiar.

A woman comes into the living room from, what I think, the kitchen. She looks up and stops upon seeing me. My mouth is wide open. "Oh my god, it's you. I was just thinking about you the other day." The woman says, coming up to me. I smile at her.

"How are you doing, umm..." I hint at her to say her name. "Oh, I'm sorry dear. My name is Helena, and my baby girl's name is Yasmin." She tells me. I nod at her and smile at her. "I'm glad you got her safely." I tell her. She chuckles at me and turns towards her baby. "Thank you Kate. I honestly didn't know you were the one my Aunt was looking for, but I am very happy about it. Did you get done with your business that you had to do?" She asks me, feeding her baby while sitting on the couch.

"Yes, I just got done with it later today actually." I tell her, hearing a cough coming from behind me. I look behind me with a questioning face. I see Ace look at me with a curious face and move his eyes towards Helena before moving them back to me. 

"So, when did you meet, Helena?" I hear him ask. I smirk at him.

"I met her on the plane ride over here. She sat in the seat next to me."

I see everyone nod. "So, who are you guys? Are you friends of Kate's?" I hear Laura's husband ask the boys.

"They are my friends, they helped me with my business that I had to handle today." I tell him, looking back over to the boys. "Meet Ace, Lee, Jay, and Zack." I point each one out to him and Helena.

"Well, if your friends of Kate's then your friends of ours, we prepared some rooms for you and eat some food." Laura's husband says. "Making sure Ace's room is close to Kate's" I hear little bit's voice behind me. I turn towards her on the couch. 

"I agree with Isabella, Dave. I think Ace and Kate have a thing for each other." I hear Laura say. I blush and focus my attention on Isabella. I hear Ace chuckle. "That I do, and I won't deny it." I hear him confess.

I block them out and look at Isabella. "How was your nap, little bit?" I ask her as she assesses my face. She smiles at me and nods, coming closer to my ear. "Do you like him too?" She whispers into my ear. I smile, honestly, at her and nod my head. "I like him too." She says smiling at me. I chuckle at her and pick her up.

"Alright then, everyone. Food is ready." Laura says, clapping her hands together and leading the way towards the dining room. Everyone takes a seat, Dave and Laura at the ends of the table, Helena and her baby next to Laura on her right side.

I take my seat seating Isabella next to Laura on the left side. Ace sits next to me and Lee next to him. Jay and Zack sit across from us. We grab our food and start to eat, laughing and getting into conversations between each other.

Ace taps my shoulder. I turn towards him to see the boys all looking at me expectantly, the table goes quiet after they see the boys expressions. "Yes?" I ask them, swallowing my food. "Are you going to tell us about the tattoo you have on your back?" Ace asks, the boys nod with what he said. Laura laughs. "Did you actually get the tattoo you were talking about to me?" She smiles sweetly at me. 

I smile and nod my head. I stand up and turn around, pulling up the back of my shirt to show everyone my tattoos. (Up at the top of chapter ^^^) Pulling back down my shirt, I sit back down and take a sip of my water before I start. 

"I got the tattoo when I got to Louisiana. Everything was changing about me, my look, name, how I acted. I just wanted something to remember about my old life, the friends I had and my parents. So I went to a tattoo parlor and asked them to design a rose, however they wanted, but it had to be a rose. To a stranger, it might look like a beautiful piece of art that I wanted, but to me, the rose symbolizes my old life. Each petal on it represents a loved one I lost and friends I had. The one on my lower back, doesn't really symbolize anything. I just really liked it." Tell them. 

I see Laura smile at me. "I thought you would go with that one." She says, remembering the time I asked her about what I should get as a tattoo to remember them by. The boys smile at me. "You are one hell of a person, you know that?" Ace says, pulling my into his side and hugging me. I laugh and soon, everyone else is laughing along with me.

The day is spent with all of us laughing and talking. 

It was nighttime when everyone started to head towards their respective rooms. Laura shows us our rooms, making sure that mine and Ace's room are close together. 

Walking into my room I brush my teeth and change into the clothes that Laura gave me. I sit on the bed and look out the window, processing all that happened today. I feel like a weight is finally lifted off of my shoulders and I could finally breathe again.

Pulling the covers out, I get into bed and settle into it. Pulling the covers over me, sleep comes instantly. Finally giving me a peaceful night without my nightmares. I was just left with dreams of how my life is starting to become good with the people in it.