𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐭𝐰𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐲 ─── moving

Faltbush Ave., 7th February 2008

"𝔚hat...?" Arabella was in a state of shock as she looked at the people beyond the door. Her parents eyebrows were furrowed, though her younger sister remained on her phone, ignoring everything. "I didn't know you guys were coming."

"We're not guys, Arabella. We're your parents, don't use that term." Her mother tutted, as Arabella tightened her grip on the door. "Let us inside."

"I-"

"Don't disobey your mother." Her father finally spoke, his face twisted into a grimace. Arabella's hands shook, staring at the man. He'd never been like this when she was a young child, always smiling and laughing but the past few years of arguing with her mother, had lead to the cold and disregarding man ahead of her.

"I hadn't said anything." Arabella opened the door, stepping aside as she shiver in anticipation and fear at what they were going to see. Her fingers twisted her wedding band around as they all came to a stop, looking around in shock.

"What the hell is going on here?" Her mother twisted, looking at the bare walls and floor of Arabella's apartment. The girl tried to remain calm, clinging onto her wedding ring as she hoped that Luke would be back soon from the new place. She needed his comforting presence here. "Arabella!"

"I'm moving house." Surprisingly, her voice didn't tremble.

"And you didn't tell us?" Her father watched her with angry eyes. "We should have been with you to vet the new apartment, to see where you're living, to speak to the landlords."

"I did all of that." Arabella nodded. This was mainly because Iris, Ava, Luke and Ethan had managed to persuade her that giving her parents her new address was not the smartest idea. "It's all brought, ready to move in. This is just the final stages of moving the furniture."

"Where is this new place?" Her mother turned, glaring down at her eldest daughter as Arabella backed away to the kitchen, putting her back to her family as she packed the final bits of crockery.

"It's still in New York, close to the hospital that I'm working at next year. It's got a garden, and five bedrooms." Arabella rattled off. "It's lovely, really nice."

"You managed to afford a five bedroom house in New York on a student's salary?" Her mother scoffed. "That's a complete lie. You aren't able to afford that."

"I didn't pay for it." Arabella sighed, turning around. "Luke did. I'm moving in with him."

It was so quiet that you probably could have heard a pin drop on the floor.

"You're doing what?"

"I'm moving in with Luke." Arabella nodded. "My lease is almost up, and he's looking for a place to settle in New York, so we decided to get a house together. He's the CEO of a private security company, so it's in his salary. We looked around, or started in like November of last year. We weren't going to buy, merely look at our options, but then we found this house and it's perfect."

A smile fell onto Arabella's face at the thought of her new home.

"Even then we weren't going to buy, but I was so in love with it. I thought of taking out a loan, but Luke just said that we should buy it and..." Arabella shrugged. "...and we brought it. It was finalised last week, I need to move out by two days so we're now moving into the new place."

"And you didn't think to tell us?"

"It's been a rush. It slipped my mind." Arabella tried to placate, holding her hands ahead of her. Her mother reached forward, grasping her left hand with wide eyes as she looked down at Arabella's hand.

"What is this?" Arabella paled, staring at her wedding band.

"Mom..."

"I want to hear you say it." Dot seemed incensed, anger swirling around her. "What is this, Arabella?"

"You're hurting me." Arabella hissed in response to her mother's nails digging into the palm of her hand. "It's a wedding band."

"Why are you wearing a wedding band?" Dot stared down at her. "Don't tell me that you went and married this boy!"

"Yes! Okay, I married Luke!" Arabella managed to pull her hand free, keeping it tucked close to her chest as she watched the woman.

"You didn't invite us?" Her father looked somewhat heartbroken. "We're your parents and you didn't invite us to the wedding?"

"It was a spur of the moment thing." Her sister scoffed, as Arabella shot her a glare. She didn't need to contribute to this. 

"You didn't think it through." Her mother looked despairing, running a hand through her hair. "Do you hear this, Simon? We leave her alone for two months as she goes and marries someone on a spur of the moment decision! Have you even thought about finances, work, all of that? Or did you just rush into this with no foreplanning."

"I'm not a child anymore, you don't get to treat me like one."

 "Whatever you have done, it can be undone. We can get a good divorce lawyer." Dot turned, nodding to herself. "I have a good friend who can do it, no questions asked."

"For once, can you stop undermining all of my decisions. I married him because I love him, I am not going to divorce him,"

"What do you know of love? You don't know anything about the trials and tribulations..."

"For goodness sake, I am not you and dad," Arabella hissed, throwing her arms in the air. "I love Luke, and that's final. We don't argue over every little thing, like you two do! I don't understand, why aren't you happy for me?"

"Luke? Luke, as in the man you only started dating last year?" Her mother's eyes narrowed. "Your father hasn't even met the boy!"

"So what?" Her father was silently fuming in the corner, brooding menacingly. "You're not me. You don't control my life or my actions."

"Young lady, I am your mother!"

"Iris is more than a mother than you were," Arabella spat out, as her parents stepped back in shock. She almost slapped her hand over her mouth, but stopped. It was the harsh reality of her life; Iris was more like her mother than her actual mother was. Her hands were trembling now, fear racing through her body.

"Arabella, take that back right now!" She shook her head. It was out now.

"It's the truth, and I won't apologize for it," Her parents looked ready to yell at her, but she continued on regardless. "All I ever was for you two was a buffer for when you got especially argumentative. Iris was there for me when you were too busy with work, or when you focused more of Amelia's achievements instead of my own, because hers were sports and mine weren't. Iris was the one who persuaded me to go to and get a nursing degree. She helped me find a house to rent, to do my taxes; she took me shopping on my birthday, invited me around for Christmas and dinners. She practically raised me!"

Her father's hand clamped onto her arm, as her mother placed a hand over her heart.

"Don't you take that tone with either of us, we are your parents..."

"Get your hands off of my wife," Arabella turned around, as did her parents, to look at Luke and Ethan in the doorway.

Her husband was fuming, his blues eyes dark with anger, as he drew himself to his full height and crossed his arms. Ellie only ever saw Luke as her tall, dork of a boyfriend, so she often forgot that he was a fighter, and a good one at that. It wasn't until she saw him, with his sleeves rolled up, showcasing the scars littered across his hand and arms, his eyebrows furrowed, and his body tensed, that she remembered that he could be dangerous.

And that her husband was hot.

Ethan stood behind the older man, leaning against the door, picking his nails casually, though he glared at them with one eye.

"Who is this?" Her father stared at the scarred man, face paling.

"My husband." Ellie took great pleasure in saying that, pulling her arm from her father's grip, as she retreated to stand with Luke and Ethan, glaring at her family.

"I think you've overstayed your welcome," Ethan replied, straightening up, as Luke wrapped his arm around her shoulders. Ellie almost sank in relief into his arms. "As you can see, we've got moving to do. So please, leave and don't bother coming back."

"You can not kick me out of my daughter's home," Her mother called, wiping the tears from her eyes, as she looked over at Arabella. "Bella, please."

"Leave, now." They took a moment to process Luke's words, before finally leaving the apartment, occasionally glancing backwards at her. Ethan slammed the door closed behind them, as Ellie leant into Luke, for warmth and comfort, as he pressed a kiss to her head and slowly began to relax.

"You're alright, Ellie." Luke hummed, kissing her forehead softly. "You did so well. I'm really proud of you."

"But, was I right? I just feel like I shouldn't have been so rude..." She hummed, running her hands through her hair.

"No, I'm pretty sure they had it coming. Don't feel sorry at all, baby," Luke grinned, grabbing her hand, and pressing kisses to her knuckles. "You did so well."

"Thanks for getting back so quick,"

"Anything for you," He replied, pressing a kiss to her lips, cupping her cheeks softly.

"Right...oh gods, my poor eye!" Luke sighed, rubbing his temple, as he looked over at Ethan in annoyance. "Where's the bleach? Or the holy water? I need to purify myself after witnessing such a..."

"Are you done?"

"...act of unholy..."

"We're literally married!"

"...I can not believe that you would scar me like this. I will have to lose my other eye because of it..."

"Are you sure it's not too late to put him back into the psych ward?"

"Luke!"

"...I'm not that good with one eye, imagine how terrible I'll be with no eyes..."

"I'm so sincerely tempted to stab you right now, you have no idea," Luke was rubbing his forehead in exasperation, as the boy continued to rant on. "You have three seconds to run."

"...it would be terrible..."

"One..."

"...they'd call me Ethan 'no eyes'..."

"Two..."

"...and Luke, you're not being serious, right?"

"Three..."

"Bella, get your husband!"

"He's not going to kill you," Arabella watched as Luke began to chase Ethan down the stairs.

"Yes he will!"

∘☽༓☾∘

Hiya,

Ethan, Luke and Ellie are the only brotp that I will accept, they are the best, period and Ethan is just me in a nutshell. On the note of art, Radiogirl437 has a book called Drawings I Made, which has a drawing of Ethan in a bridesmaid dress (so please check that out, you won't regret it).

Also, I'm just about ready to propose to esch042013 , who has created these amazing drawings. I honestly am in love with them, one is my new phone screen at the moment. Nina, you're brilliant and so crazy talented. I'm super hyped to see whatever you come up with :)

Personally, I love all of them, but the last two hold a special place for me. Let me know what you think,

Love Li xx