My mom called me over to talk about something important. âOkay so after a lot of convincing from Konain.â All I could think about was how it annoyed Cade when she called Dad that. âI decided Iâm going back home.â
I raise my eyebrows. âWhat? No, you canât, you love it here-â
âTo visit, only to visit our family.â
I exhaled out of relief. âOh yeah, they think youâre dead or they did. They saw me ride off on a dragon the last time I saw them, so they probably think that youâre with me or something.â
âAre⦠are my parents still alive?â Mom asked nervously.
I nodded. âGrandpa and Grandma are still very much alive. They just sleep a lot and donât like being bothered.â
Mom laughed. âSo, theyâre the same. So, you were raised by my sister and her husband but no one ever talked about me? Not even your grandparents?â
I shook my head. âTay heard about you, but I think that's because she loves looking at old family pictures and she always asked questions. Tayâs their daughter, my sister.â I didnât feel comfortable calling Tay my cousin, we were raised sisters.
âKonn is going to come with us, do you think Cade will want to come too? I havenât seen him in a little while. I think I should try to spend as much time with him as I can, then as much time as I can with Gray too. Well, whenever I meet him.â
âI doubt heâll want to come.â
Dad opened the front door. âWhen are we leaving? Is Aqua coming?â He had a packed bag with him.
âKaya and Polly arenât coming anymore, theyâre officially staying with Stewart, him and his fiancée are adopting them.â
âThatâs great Konn. Aquaâs coming, I want to invite Cade but Aqua doesnât think heâll want to come.â
Dad didnât walk into the house. He just stuck his upper body in to talk to us. âCade should come, heâs never been to the human world on anything other than work before.â
I shook my head. âWhen you guys came to get me, he said it was insufferable and I quote.â I started to think more, and I wasnât sure if Cade was all that fond of humanity as a whole.
âI want Cade to come.â I heard a voice that sounded like Gray then Dad walked all the way in with him.
Gray ran to me and hugged me. âAre you coming too Aqua?â I made sure to visit Gray once a week for the last month so he wouldnât miss me too much. I loved spending time with him.
âI am.â I loved the idea of seeing Tay and my other siblings again. My mom looked really surprised to see Gray.
âYouâre going to the human world?â Lexus asked.
âYeah, a few days I think.â
âIâm coming with you. This is the perfect time for me to see the human world on vacation instead of briefly.â
âLexus wants to come too.â I said. âWe can leave when he gets here.â I already had a bag of clothes and essentials here since I stayed here often.
Gray pulled away from me and looked around at all the magical items in the house. âMagic is so cool.â
Dad closed the door. âGray, I told you not to run in.â
Gray walked to him. âSorry Dad, I got excited when I saw my sister.â I looked at mom who was smiling.
Dad put his hands on Gray's shoulders. âGray, this is Mae, sheâs Aquaâs mom and a good friend of mine. Mae this is my son Gray.â
Gray smiled. âItâs nice to meet you.â
âItâs nice to meet you too.â Mom said. âIâm glad you can come with us to the outside world.â
Gray nodded. âI had to beg my mom, then she got mad at my dad for mentioning the trip around me.â
He chuckled. Dad probably mentioned it on purpose. âShe doesnât like me going places unless she knows everyone.â
Dad patted his head. âAlright, thatâs enough.â
Mom walked towards the kitchen. âI made breakfast, so we can eat while we wait.â
Dad took out his phone and made a call. âHey Cade, weâre all going to the human world for a vacation for a few days. You want to come with us?â âYeah Mae and Aqua are coming.â He probably asked because of our fight. âWhat?â âGive me a second, Iâll call you back.â He hung up. âAqua can I talk to you?â
I nodded and we stepped outside the house to talk. âWhat did he tell you?â
âHe said that you two arenât on speaking terms and that you wouldnât want to see him.â
I shrugged. âYeah thatâs true, I donât want to see him.â
Dad frowned. âDid something happen? I finally convinced Lynn to let me introduce Gray to Mae. I want us to be all together as a family Aqua.â
Thatâs all I ever wanted so how could I let my fight with Cade get in the way of things? âWe disagreed about something.â I didnât want to tell him that his son didnât like the woman he loved. âFine he can come but Iâm not speaking to him.â
Dad kissed my forehead. âGreat, thanks Aqua.â
We were back in and ate while we waited. When Lexus and Cade got here they acted really friendly towards each other. Sadia came with Cade and she was ignoring Lexus but came straight to me. âHey Aqua.â Even though I hadnât seen her since the falling out with Cade we still texted. I smiled and introduced her to my Mom who was right next to me.
Cade didnât speak to me and I didnât speak to him. He greeted my mother, but he didnât acknowledge her much after that.
We flew to the human world on Dad and Cade. I was with my mom and Lexus on Dad while Gray and Sadia were on Cade. When we got there, I decided that Lexus and I would stay with Gram while the others stayed in the nearest hotel in the closest city.
âGram this is Lexus.â I introduced.
Gram nodded. âI met him when he was looking for you, come in.â I guess a lot of people met while looking for me.
We walked in and I was surprised to see Tay on the couch reading magic spell books. âAqua!â She got up, rushed to me with a hug. âItâs nice to see you again too Lexus.â
Lexus nodded. âYeah, you too.â He walked to the back room with our stuff.
That night I went on and on to Lexus about how I didnât want Cade around my mom. âAnd she actually wants to be close with him, itâs a mess really.â
Lexus was half asleep. âWhy does he need to like your mom?â He mumbled. âI understand that the last comment he made about you defending her. That would have pissed me off too, but he doesnât need to like her.â
We were cuddling. âHe doesnât even have many good reasons other than the affair, but even with that he forgave Dad. He doesnât see me and my mom in a good light so why should we have to be around him?â
Lexus brought me closer against him. âYou guys love each other. Youâre letting the way he feels about your mom get in the way of your relationship with your brother. He cares about you and does see you in a good light. Itâs hard for him to adjust to all the changes, but heâs trying.â
âItâs been half a year. how much longer does he need?â Lexus didnât reply because he fell asleep.