“I’m never going back. I’m staying here forever,” I declared, shakily stepping off the plane and onto the gangway that led to the airport terminal. “Either that or I’m hitch-hiking back.”

            Anthony laughed, keeping an arm securely wrapped around my shoulder. “I can’t believe you screamed as the plane took off.”

            “She’s such a chicken,” my brother muttered. “We only hit a bump.”

            “It was my first time on a plane!” I defended myself, ready to whack both boys in the face with my carry-ons.

            Caroline chuckled. “You’ll grow to like it, Ellie.”

            “Never.”

            “Come on, come on,” Anthony urged, pressing his arm into my back so I’d start walking. “My parents are waiting. Let’s go meet this.”

            Butterflies appeared in my stomach and I suddenly felt panicky. “What if they don’t like me? Will that ruin your plan?”

            “Probably.”

            My feet froze. “Oh my God. What if you have to stay here?”

            “I won’t,” Anthony assured me, pausing as other passengers squeezed by us. “Now come on, we’re blocking the path.”

            Sighing, I followed him, Julius, Caroline, and my brother out of the gangway. The airplane ride had already left my nerves on end and drained me. All I wanted to do was take a nap. Meeting Anthony’s parents was going to be a challenge. Especially since first impressions met a lot. And there was a chance they could force Anthony to stay down here, hundreds of miles away from me. My heart lurched at the thought. Not when we were finally together. I refused to let that happen.

            After about fifteen minutes of wandering around the gigantic airplane terminal (and dragging Julius away from all the expensive, but delicious looking food stands), we finally came across a small group of people holding signs like they did in the movies. Anthony tensed beside me and I glanced up to see a grin spreading across his face. “You ready, Ellie?” he inquired.

            “For what?”

            He pointed at a couple holding a sign together. The sign read Anthony Quinn and Co. “Those are my parents.”

            My stomach dropped into my gut. For the moment, the pair hadn’t noticed us. I took this as a chance to study them. Anthony’s Mom was a slender, kind looking woman with a pretty face. Anthony hadn’t been lying when he mentioned his parents appeared younger than they actually were. To me, his mom seemed like she was maybe late twenties. His father also appeared to be around that age. Both of his parents shared his chestnut colored hair— his father having the tiny curls that appeared in his when he was sweaty. Anthony also shared his father’s emerald eyes, while his mother had light brown orbs.

            Light brown orbs that landed directly on my face.

            I went rigid. I was so not ready for this.

            “Mom!” Anthony hollered, forcing me forward. “Dad! Hey!”

            “Anthony!” his mom cried happily, rushing forward and throwing her arms around both of us. “And Ellie! It’s so nice to meet you!”

            Surprised, it took me a moment to respond. “Uh, nice to meet you too.” Cursing myself, I realized I should’ve asked Anthony what his parents names were.

            “I’m Heidi,” his mom informed me after she pulled away, as if reading my thoughts. “And this is my husband, Mark.”

            Anthony’s dad stepped forward, holding out his hand. “Pleased to meet you.”

            A little intimated by his father’s hulking figure, I shyly slipped my hand into his. “Nice to meet you, Mr. Quinn. I’m Ellie.”

            “You can call me Mark,” he responded friendly.

            His good-natured attitude threw me a ball. Judging from his conversations with Anthony, I figured he was a hard ass. It was reliving to know he wasn’t, but also a little worrying. He could just be putting up a front. I couldn’t let my guard down.

            “Isn’t she so cute?” Anthony gushed, pressing my face into his chest. “She’s been dying to meet you guys.”

            “I’ve been dying to meet her!” Heidi responded just as enthusiastically.

            Pushing myself away from Anthony, I smiled at her. I was definitely going to like her.

            “Where are your other friends?” Mark asked his son.

            Anthony hooked his thumb back. “They’re coming.”

            “Hello, Heidi!” Julius cried loudly, throwing his arms around the dainty woman. I was surprised she could withstand his weight. “I’ve missed you!”

            Heidi laughed, patting the blonde on his back. “Oh, how I’ve missed your friendliness, Julius.”

            I blinked. They’d met before? That was new information to me.

            “Hey, Heidi, Mark,” my brother greeted, coming up behind us with Caroline. “Nice to meet you guys.”

            Julius pulled away so Anthony’s parents could shake Mason’s hand and then Caroline’s. “Nice to meet you,” Caroline added in a shy voice.

            Heidi smiled. “Both of you girls are so cute.”

            “You’re pretty cute yourself,” Julius winked.

            Mark sighed, shaking his head. “She’s too old for you, Jules. We’ve been over this.”

            “You just don’t want to share.”

            “Well, that too.”

            Anthony’s hand slid over mine and he squeezed it. “Hey, can we get going? I’m hungry and I think Ellie’s tired.”

            “How did you know?” I asked, genuinely surprised.

            He gave me a secretive smile. “I have my ways.”

            Cocking an eyebrow, I debated about saying more, but decided not to. A part of me thought it had to do with something that happened in Walmart, but I wasn’t sure. Did a blink more times than usual? Was I spacing? It was kind of cute how Anthony knew that… A giddy smile crossed my face.

            “Yeah, and I’m starving,” Julius added.

            Caroline stared at him. “But you ate like fifty things on the plane!”

            “I’m a growing boy, Carol.”

            “No you’re not—”

            “Let him eat, let him eat,” Heidi interposed, waving Caroline off. “Do you see how skinny he is?”

            Julius patted his stomach. “It’s all muscle. I’m not skinny.”

            “You’re still skinny.”

            “I’m not!”

            Anthony chuckled. “You’ll never be able to win against my mom, remember Julius?”

            “But…”

            Mark sighed, nodding his head toward the front of the terminal. “Let’s get out of here. It’s stuffy.”

            Now that he mentioned it, I realized it was rather warm in the overcrowded building. Yanking at the collar of my sweatshirt, I followed the group as we moved to the exit. Anthony glanced down at me, grinning. “You won’t need that in about three minutes. It’s hotter outside.”

            I made a face. “Great…”

            Laughing again, he took my hand into his. “Bare with it, Ellie.”

            Upon stepping outside the terminal, I realized how lucky I was being able to live in Massachusetts. The hot air felt nearly suffocating. Immediately I figured out I was overdressed. I shimmied out of my sweatshirt, throwing it over my shoulder as a fine line of sweat formed on my brow just from the walk from the building to the car. Mason, Caroline, and Julius all seemed to be having the same reaction, while Anthony didn’t even look the least bit hot. The advantages of growing up in the sunny state.

            On the hour-long ride to Anthony’s house, Julius filled the van with his never-ending chatter. Part of me was glad he kept the awkward silence away, but the other part wanted me to shove my fist up his mouth. Being cooped up next to the blabbering blonde in the stuffy van was beginning to take its toll. There was just so much of him I could take… Especially when he someone changed the topic to the days when I had a crush on him.

            “Julius!” I cried sharply as he mentioned the time I’d confessed to him. “Be quiet—”

            “No,” Anthony interjected, slapping a hand over my mouth, “you be quiet. I want to hear this.”

            “Me too!” Heidi chirped happily. “You really like the handsome guys, don’t you Ellie?

            My cheeks flushed and I quickly adverted my gaze, yanking Anthony’s hand away from my face. “I like their personalities too…”

            She laughed. “Well of course you do!”

            “Anyway, so Ellie comes up to me after practice one day, her face blushing in the presence of my sexy nude body—”

            Mason snorted. “Really?”

            “What?” Julius responded, frowning at him.

            He shook his head. “Nothing. Continue.”

            “Anyway, we were just normal friends back then. You know, I was her older brother’s best friend. The clichéd kind of crush. Of course, I already knew she had feelings for me.”

            Anthony patted me on the shoulder. “That’s because she wears her emotions on her sleeve.”

            I stuck my tongue out at him. “You never told me you knew I liked you, Anthony.”

            “That’s because I didn’t want to embarrass you.”

            “Sure it is.”

            He smirked. “You can act all cool, Ellie, but your feelings for me were as obvious as your lies about your age.”

            My cheeks flooded in shame. I’d almost forgotten about that. But now he’d brought it back… and in front of his parents. Struggling to redeem myself, I examined the back of my fingernails casually. “Oh, okay. But remember you’re the one who confessed first. Practically convincing me that I should choose you over Julius.”

            “I…” Caught in a moment of  his own embarrassment, Anthony’s cheeks tinged pink.

            His mom glanced over the seat, grinning at him. “Is that so? Anthony made the first move?”

            I smirked as Anthony glowered at her, refusing to answer.

            “Isn’t it usually that the girl confesses and the guy asks her out?” my brother asked, feigning confusion.

            “So did Ellie ask you out or something?” Caroline added, pressing her lips together to keep from smiling.

            “No!”

            Everyone besides Anthony broke out into chuckles at his reaction. Even his dad smirked. Anthony, on the other hand, stared determinedly out the window. Grinning, I squeezed his hand. “We’re only teasing you.”

            He grumbled something incoherent under his breath and I laughed again.

            Julius cleared his throat. “I’m still telling a story.”

            “Continue,” Heidi responded, staring at him expectantly.

            “Well, Ellie comes up to me and practically yells her feelings in my face. And I really do mean yell. Anyone in a twenty-five meter radius could have heard her.”

            I pursed my lips. “It wasn’t that loud.”

            “It was loud.”

            “I heard it,” Mason offered unhelpfully.

            Anthony, now grinning again, nudged me in the side with an elbow. “How come I didn’t get a loud confession?”

            “I-I was embarrassed.”

            “You do tend to become louder when you’re embarrassed,” Caroline commented thoughtfully.           

            Heidi laughed. “Guys, stop picking on her! What happened next Julius?”

            I smiled wryly. She said not to pick on me, and yet she wanted Julius to continue?

            “Well, I was really surprised so…”

            “He turned me down in five seconds flat,” I stated flatly. “Not even a brief moment of consideration.”

            This came as a surprise to both Anthony and his mom. “Really?” they chorused.

            Julius scratched the back of his head sheepishly. “I didn’t think she was serious. I didn’t know she was until she started crying.”

            “I wasn’t crying! I just teared over a little.”

            “But then you came crying to me…” Caroline added.

            I narrowed my eyes at her.

            “Er, I mean you came laughing to me?”

            Julius chuckled. “Nice try, Caroline.”

            “Dang.”

            “Julius, you’re so mean,” Anthony said, shaking his head, but grinning despite his words. “I wish I’d seen that.”

            “I don’t,” I mumbled. “I was mortified.”

            Julius nodded. “She wouldn’t talk to me for a week.”

            “When did things become normal between you guys again?” Heidi inquired. “You seem to be friendly now.”

            “Well,” I started, a wicked smile appearing on my face. “He actually— ow!” My hand automatically went to my side, where Julius had elbowed me roughly.

            He shot me a warning look. “It was about three weeks after. She was asked out by a douche bag.”

            “Language!”

            Rolling his eyes, he waved Heidi off. “Yes, Mother.”

            “He was though,” Caroline agreed quietly.

            “Why?”

            “He cheated on her,” Julius, Anthony, Caroline, and Mason stated simultaneously.

            I smiled tightly. “Said so casually…”

            “Oh, I’m sorry, honey,” Heidi said, frowning at me. “Teenagers can be so finicky.”

            “It’s okay,” I told her. “After he broke up with me I saw Ant— ah, nothing…”

            Anthony grinned. “She developed a crush on me and managed to get over her heartbreak.”

            “It sounds stupid if you put it like that,” I muttered.

            “I think it’s cute.”

            “That I used you as a rebound?”

            He cocked an eyebrow. “Did you?”

            “Well, no, but—”           

            “Then it doesn’t matter. I’m just happy out of all the Walmart workers in the world, you decided to like me.”

            “Aren’t you guys so cute?” Julius cooed. “You found love in a Walmart.”

            His words caused me to do a double take. Love? Who said anything about love? Julius thought Anthony and I were in love? Glancing at the brunet, I felt my heart skip a beat. Was I in love with Anthony? I was positive I liked him a lot, but was it love…?

            Noticing I was staring at him, he grinned at me. “See something you like?”

            “Yeah,” I responded before I realized what I was saying.

            “I do too,” he laughed.

            The corners of my mouth curved up into a smile. Even if I wasn’t sure if I loved him now or not, I knew there was nothing that could keep me from feeling the way I did about him now.

            “So, when we get home, why don’t you all unpack and then we’ll head to one of Mark’s restaurants for dinner?” Anthony’s mom suggested, smiling at us. “We can all get to know each other a little more. Especially you, Ellie.”

            For a moment, her words came as a shock to me. I’d almost forgotten that Mark owned a chain of restaurants. Which was why he wanted Anthony to move back down… Another thing I’d almost forgotten. I was here to help convince them that Anthony should continue living in Massachusetts. My hand subconsciously tightened around Anthony’s. There was no way I’d let him move back.

            “What restaurant do you own?” Caroline questioned.

            “Quinn Grill. Original, huh?” he responded, glancing into the rear-view mirror. “I’m surprised people come to a place with a name like that.”

            “I am too,” Anthony said jokingly.

            “I like it!” I told Mark seriously.

            Julius smirked at me. “Suck up.”

            I made a face at him. So what if I sucked up? It’d be better for me in the long run.

            “Anthony will show you all to the guest rooms. Ellie, I take it you’re sharing with Anthony?”

            My eyes widened. “What?”

            “Of course she is,” Anthony stated easily.

            “I am?”

            “She is?” Mason echoed.

            Julius just frowned. “That’s no fun.”

            Anthony grinned back at him. “Were you planning to slip into her bed?”

            “Maybe.”

            “I don’t mind sharing a room with Caroline if that’s the problem—”

            “You don’t want to stay with me?” Anthony asked, feigning a hurt look.

            I glanced back at his mom, who was staring at me. “I do, I just don’t know…”

            “You guys are grown up,” Heidi said, rolling her eyes. “I can’t expect to keep you separated, can I?”

            Anthony nodded. “Exactly.”

            “Well, I guess I am then.”

            “Good. Then the other three can have their own rooms. We can also stop somewhere to pick up shampoo and conditioner or whatever else you need that they didn’t allow you to bring on the plane.”

            “Razors,” Caroline said at once. “We definitely need razors. Especially if we’re going to the beach.”

            “Amen to that,” Julius agreed. “I hate girls with hairy legs.”

            “I don’t know… I kind of like the primitiveness of hairy legs,” Anthony commented, shrugging.

            Everyone in the car turned to stare at Anthony. “Dude, you’re gross,” Mason remarked after a moment.

            Anthony managed to keep his face straight for five seconds before bursting out laughing. “Guys, I’m kidding! Of course I don’t like hairy legs!”

            “Damn, that means I’ve been growing my leg hair out for nothing,” I swore, snapping my fingers.

            Julius laughed while Anthony just rolled his eyes. “You’re not allowed to go to the beach if you don’t shave your legs,” Anthony told me seriously.

            I waved him off. “I wouldn’t go out in public without my legs shaved anyway, Anthony.”

            “Hey, Anthony, maybe you can be one of those boyfriends who shaves his girlfriend’s legs like in that Pierce the Veil music video,” Julius suggested with a grin.           

            “Absolutely not.”

            For the next twenty minutes, the conversation revolved around body hair and I spaced out, not the least bit interested in the topic. After what felt like forever, Mark announced that we were pulling onto the street his home was located on. Although I expected Anthony’s house to be a little fancy, it still came as a shock when my eyes landed on a beautiful, white, three-story house. The shutters and framing on the house was black, matching the white nicely. I wasn’t sure if it was just me, but it also seemed like the yard and house was perfectly symmetrical. There were two rose bushes on either side of the sand path that led to the front door, and a fancy lining that. Even the trees in the manicured lawn were placed in a proportional pattern.

            “Well, it’s not much, but it’s what I call home,” Anthony announced as we pulled into the driveway.

            I whipped my head around to gape at him. “Not much? Not much?”

            A grin broke out across his face. “Okay, okay. So it is much.”

            “I’ll say,” I muttered, climbing out of the car. “I’m afraid to step on your lawn.”

            “Yeah, I wouldn’t do that if I was you. The guard dogs will bite your legs off.”

            “Guard dogs?” I repeated incredulously. “Seriously?”

            Anthony chuckled. “Nope. You’re so gullible.”

            I puffed out my cheeks. “Jerk.”

            “Come on, I’ll help you carry your stuff in,” he offered, nodding his head to the trunk, where Julius was already pulling out his suitcases.

            The inside of the house was just as impressive as the outside. They even had a chandelier. Instead of exploring the house like I really wanted to, Anthony led me straight up to his room. Surprisingly, it looked more like an adult’s room than a college kid’s room. The whole room was spotless and almost bare. The only furniture was the king-sized bed in the middle, a desk in the far right corner, a wardrobe in the far left, and a gigantic flat screen on the wall.

            “Damn, I forgot my x-box,” Anthony muttered as his gaze landed on the T.V. “No videogames I guess.”

            “Mason brings his everywhere. He’ll probably have it.”

            “That’s good,” he sighed. “You can just put your stuff on the bed for now. We can sort it out later.”

            I nodded, tossing the suitcase I’d brought onto the mattress. “Your room is kind of boring.”

            “I took everything with me up to Massachusetts,” he explained, shrugging. “I told my parents just to make it into a guest room. I mean, it kind of is now.”

            “You were never planning to move back here?”

            He shook his head. “Nah. I don’t like it here.”

            “Why not?”

            “I grew up here. Don’t most people want to get out of the place they grew up?”

            I shrugged. “Dunno. I haven’t had the urge to leave Sandwich.”

            “That’s because it’s nice there. I like it there. I want to stay there,” he responded, flopping down onto the bed next to my belongings.

            “What do I have to do?” I inquired, sitting on the bed next to him

            He glanced up at me, his green eyes twinkling. “Just follow my lead.”

            “I don’t know if I trust you…”

            Grinning, he sat up and quickly gave me a kiss. “You’ll just have to, won’t you?”

            “I suppose,” I replied, smiling back at him. “But maybe another kiss would convince me.”

            “Ah, greedy are we?”

            “Just a little,” I murmured as I pressed my lips against his.

            “Oops. Am I interrupting something?”

            Immediately I jerked away from Anthony, turning to face the door. Heidi was standing there, grinning sheepishly. I blushed, completely embarrassed she’d seen that. “Ah, no… We weren’t…. Yeah.”

            She laughed. “You’re cute, Ellie. I just wanted to see how you guys were making out… Oh, no puns intended.”

            Anthony groaned. “Mom…”

            “Sorry, sorry! I’ll leave you to alone. Come to the living room when you’re ready and we can head out.”

            As soon as she disappeared from the doorframe, I fell back against Anthony, shaking my head. “Next time let’s close the door.”

            “Yeah,” he chuckled, the noise reverberated through his chest. “Come on, we can get comfy cozy later. First, let’s deal with dinner. Don’t say anything about your awful drug and drinking habits, okay Ellie?”

            Rolling my eyes, I slid myself off my bed. “I’ll try not to snort at the table.”

_________________ 

I WOKE UP WITH A HEADACHE FROM A NIGHT I WON'T FORGET. I CLOSE MY EYES 'CAUSE THIS AIN'T OVER YET. 

Actually, this story is close to being over. There's only like two chatpers left... I'm excited to finish it. This was supposed to be a short story (less than 30,000 words) but it managed to make it to 90,000 + lol. Oh well. This ending just means I can start something new :D I'm torn between three different things though :sss But it seems I've hit writer's block again with this chapter. Dang. I still hope this was okay! 

Please, please, please go vote for "A Surreptitious Relationship!" for Most Popular! It's obvious Enjoying the Chase is going to win, but I'd like to at least close the gap a little :D Thank you so much! All your support has been great so far! :D Really! It makes me proud to have you as fans c: Even you silent readers. (Silent as in, no comments/votes/messages. I like you too.) The link is in the external link :)