Going back

7|| Hedgehog

A/N: Here's chapter 7. Enjoy, people.

Iris opened her eyes and blinked blearily, stretching to release her tensed muscles. She was still huddled by the door, her cheeks stained with dried tears. Squinting at her phone screen, Iris was shocked to see that she had slept for well over an hour.

I was more tired than I thought. She stood shakily to her feet and leaned heavily against the door as she tried to gather her bearings.

The room consisted of plain, white walls with a few nails drilled in but no pictures. A desk was pushed against the right wall, a stack of paper and expensive stationary lay solemnly on it. A plush carpet lay on the floor and Iris wriggled her toes in the soft material which was infinitely better than the cold floor she was so accustomed to at home. The bed was laden with a thick blanket and several pillows stacked high.

Who needs that many pillows? Iris thought, picking one up by the corner and dropping it with a slight scoff.

Curious, Iris pulled open a set of doors next to the desk. Her jaw dropped. It was a freaking walk-in wardrobe. Bigger than her room back home!

She walked to the centre and spun around, laughing softly to herself. "I want to tear this place down."

"Wait until we're not here first."

Iris whirled around and scowled, seeing Damien leaning heavily against the door, the infamous Hedgehog Hairstyle™ gloriously rested upon his crown. Briefly, Iris wondered if he slept in it.

"Don't you know it's rude to enter someone's room without knocking?" Iris asked coldly, rearranging her expression to one as smooth as glass.

"I did knock," Damien rolled his eyes, "but you didn't answer. I thought you were passed out on the floor, which would've put a damper on dinner."

"Dinner?" Iris tilted her head to the side, "You mean, there's another meal after the one we had earlier?"

Damien seemed confused. "Obviously...?"

Iris stared at him. Blinked, then shook her head. "Um, well, I'm not used to eating that much. So can I skip?"

"No. Dad says you have to at least join us if you're not gonna eat."

"Well then there's no point in me coming down in the first place." Iris was in no mood to play happy family with the man who'd left her and her mother to die.

Damien sighed and cast his gaze to the Heavens, as if silently begging for strength. "For the love of- just, just come downstairs. You've done enough already."

Iris bit back a sharp retort, rationalising that this bug was not worth her words. She gestured dramatically for him to lead the way, and followed him in stoic silence until they reached the dining room.

This time, Iris was forced to make a choice. There were only two empty chairs- one closer to David, and one closer to Damien. She did not have enough patience to deal with her odious brother's behaviour again, so slowly lowered herself in the seat diagonally opposite to David.

At least I'm next to Lisa, Iris reasoned, having taken a liking to the older woman, who retained a position at the head of the table. Lisa seemed to be the only rational one in the family, and Iris could rely on her when fights break out.

"Please feel free to take as much as you want, Iris," Lisa said kindly, gesturing to the steaming pot of some sort of fried rice, "Or you can just take the salad if you're not feeling very hungry."

"Thank you." Iris nodded, reaching over and taking a couple spoonfuls of salad. She quietly nibbled on a lettuce, studiously ignoring David's glare burning a hole in the side of her face.

"Iris," David said, his tone clipped and business-like, "I have enrolled you into the same school as your brothers- it's called Eastview Academy."

Iris crinkled her nose, stabbing at a cucumber viciously. It sounds so rich.

"So quickly?" She opted to say instead.

"Anything is possible with money," David looked a little smug- Iris had a sudden image of a hen ruffling its feathers and looking pleased.

Her lips twitched upwards and she ducked her head to hide her amusement. But she could not stop the light chuckle that pushed past her lips. "Is that so?"

Elijah, sensing a storm brewing on the horizon, loudly complimented how amazing the food tasted. Lisa eagerly grasped this opportunity, and the conversation flowed easily.

Iris's phone rang and she glanced at the screen, a tiny smile blossomed across her face. "Excuse me, I need to take this."

She quickly escaped the room and closed the door behind her. Suspicious that the others would try to listen in, Iris climbed up the stairs and rested on the step halfway, leaning against the bannister before accepting the call.

"Hey," she whispered.

"Iris Rose Ellison," a low and fierce voice said, "where have you been?"

"Right, Jax, I forgot-"

"You forgot? You forgot?! What did you forget, Iris?"

"Well I was just about to tell you if you hadn't cut me off-"

"I'll tell you what you forgot!" Jax said loudly, always one for the theatrics, "You forgot to tell your best friend that you have gone back to your shitty family!"

"Well I just came here a few hours ago!" Iris protested, but couldn't stop smiling. Yes her time here was short, but they were the most agonising of her entire life. She didn't realise how good it would feel to hear a familiar voice.

"That's no excuse!" Jax huffed. He fell silent for a few seconds, but his curiosity won out in the end. "So, what's it like living with the Von Fuckfaces?"

"Terrible," Iris grinned, "Except for the stepmother. She seems pretty cool."

"Oooh! Quite a compliment coming from you... what's going on right now?"

"I was having dinner with them, but then you called."

"And you left?!" Jax gasped, "Why would you do that?! Everyone knows that dinnertime is the best time for drama!" Jax was well versed in soap operas and drama series.

"I'm sorry for picking up your call." Iris rolled her eyes.

"Apology accepted. Now get back in there! Oh, and can you leave the call on please? I wanna hear the tea."

"I'm gonna tell you everything later on anyways."

"Yeah, but it's more entertaining to hear it firsthand."

"Bye Jax," Iris cut the call to his groans of disappointment, standing up.

Some of his cheerfulness must have rubbed off on Iris as she re-entered the dining room in much better spirits. Contrary to Jax's belief, dinner passed without much of a hitch. Iris ignored Damien's subtle jabs and David's snootiness, still captured in that little bubble of happiness.

But it was not long before that bubble popped.

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Any characters you guys want to see in upcoming chapters from the previous version- dead or alive?

I hope you guys liked it!

Stay safe and thanks for reading :)