“Funnily enough, we know! Couldn’t you hear how loud we turned the tv up last night?” Sam’s voice called back. “Keep it down this morning, Savannah’s parents are due any minute.”
I covered my mouth and started laughing, both embarrassed and still delighted by the idea as Tye winked above me.
“Like I haven’t had to take walks in the middle of the night to get away from the two of you?” Tye shouted back, still smiling.
“What is this? Payback?”
“Something like that!”
“Savannah! We’ll meet them at the door!” Sam walked away, leaving us to it as Tye rolled me on top of him.
It had been a long drive and my stomach had grown more and more into tight knots the closer we got. The last time I had seen Tye’s father he had been having a rather aggressive argument with Tye, and things had now changed. Tye and I were no longer just friends so to me it seemed rather soon to meet the parents had this not already been arranged.
Tye’s worries did not exactly coalesce with mine. His were all out of fear of having to argue with his father again.
“It will be fine,” I attempted comfort, knowing that I actually knew nothing of the situation really.
“No it won’t, but thanks for trying to cheer me up,” Tye turned the car into a pebbled driveway that curved through the trees to reveal quite a large house.
My jaw practically hit the car floor as I gazed at the huge 1930s structure, extended at the side with what appeared to be a luxury kitchen, floor-to-ceiling windows, and a magnificent wrap-around garden.
“Bloody hell,” my words slipped out before I could stop them.
“It’s not that bad,” Tye laughed, watching my face.
“I’m starting to think you were being modest when you bought a BMW.” I shook my head in disbelief. My parents’ whole house would have fitted into about three rooms of this place.
As we parked, Tye appeared to be steeling his breathing before daring to open the car door.
“Tye,” my soft mention of his name earned his gaze for a minute. “He won’t argue with you in front of me. It’s too awkward for him to even try.”
“Fair point,” he smiled at this thought. “You’re not leaving my side then, yes?” He winked before he climbed out of the car. I had barely taken a step outside across the gravel path when the front door opened and a young girl, appearing a similar age to me, though she was actually a year younger, sprinted out of the front door.
This was Isabella. She launched herself at her brother, wrapping her arms around him.
“You’re here! You’re here!”
“Oof! Can I breathe first?” Tye complained as he embraced his sister back. She was taller than me, roughly Tye’s height with similar colouring and the most amazing eyes that also held the same cocoa tint. “Isabella,” he pulled his sister off him as I walked around the car. “This is Ivy.”
“Hi,” I said meekly, before I was suddenly treated to the same welcome.
“It’s so nice to meet you,” she spoke with glee as she barrelled towards me.
“Ahh!” I backed a couple of steps as she embraced me. “Wow, friendly.”
“That’s me,” she stepped away, her face delighted as it jumped between the two of us. “Come on in then, I’m so glad you’re here. This week will be so much better with you.”
“Is it that bad already?” Tye asked as he collected our bags from the trunk. Isabella had taken my arm and was dragging me towards the house.
“Worse than you think.” She steered me through the front door. “Dad has pretty much outlined a fifty-point plan to go through with both you and me.”
“Is this about the business?” I asked as we appeared in the kitchen. It was the same extension I had seen from the outside. Clinical, pristine and contemporary, the granite worktop sparkled, practically from money rather than the stonework.
“Oh yes, I see Tye has told you all. You will have to ignore some of what our dad says, you know. He’s a strange man,” she shook her head as she deposited me by a breakfast bar stool. “Here, sit. Drink? Tye, why are you taking so long?”
She called back into the corridor.
“Thanks for the help with the bags,” Tye laughed at her as he appeared and plonked them on the floor before taking a seat next to me. “Coffee please.”
Isabella turned to one of those excessively fancy coffee machines. I couldn’t help but gaze past Tye and watch it intensely.
“Don’t you have one of those?” He asked, as though it were completely normal.
“Well, we have a machine that helps to make coffee.” I nodded with a smile. “The difference is I call it a kettle and it doesn’t look like a block of black ice.” He laughed at my analogy; it certainly did look like a strange thing.
“Coffee, Ivy?” Isabella asked as she collected the cups.
“Yes please.”
“What is on this fifty-point plan then?” Tye steered the conversation back towards their problem.
“We’ll discuss that later,” a familiar voice sounded behind us. Tye and I turned on our stools to see Tye’s father stood in the doorway, not a smile in sight.
“Hello dad,” Tye’s smile had also vanished.
To say conversation was awkward was an understatement, I had also been very wrong in my assumption that their dad would not want to bring up conversation about their contention when they had a guest. He decided to allude to it instead at every opportunity.
We had a pleasant dinner where Tye’s mother proved to be a charmer. Bubbly and kind like her daughter, Ellen Aritza was a woman who by the end of the evening I had a great affection for.
Ellen, Isabella, and
