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003. IT'S LIKE A FAMILY REUNION
"HEY, MOM! WOAH, OKAY," Zara laughed loudly as her mother embraced her in a bone-crushing hug. Her suitcase handle digging into Zara's side wasn't a big help either.
"Hi momma," Avery smiled, kissing her mom's cheek as the woman pulled her in for a hug.
Elsie Valentine had missed her little girls more than anything. It had been almost a year since she last saw them and she was overjoyed to finally be with them once again. She waited patiently, bouncing with excitement, for her son and husband to make their way over.
"REMI!" Zara squealed, bolting straight past her father who just shook his head with a wide grin. The oldest daughter ran to her little brother, giving him a welcoming hug.
As Zara began to bombard Remi with questions (as an older sister does), Theodore Valentine made his way over to his wife and middle child. He grinned down at Avery, who always seemed to be a 'daddy's girl'.
"Hey, dad," she scrunched her face up to prevent the cheesiest smile ever and leaned into him. Theo chuckled, pulling her into his side to kiss the top of her head.
"Hi, darlin'."
Avery engaged in a conversation with her parents about how they had been over the past year and then finally gave her younger brother a tight hug, though still being cautious not to hurt his already hurt arm.
"Jesus, Aves, let go of me," he grumbled with a laugh, ripping her tight grip away.
The freckled girl smiled softly, not knowing if he was joking or being serious. She hadn't seen the boy in a year, who knew how much he would've changed?
Remi Valentine noticed the dull change in his sister's mood and instantly felt bad, he had no intention of what he had said coming off harshly. Remi sighed, giving his sister a side hug.
Avery smiled to herself, rubbing Remi's forearm sweetly. The Valentine family were buzzing with excitement as they piled into Zara's car. During the drive, the two sisters had basically turned into tour guides as they pointed out the local places they love.
Once they arrived home, Avery spotted three boys sitting on the porch steps. Immediately, they stood up and ran over to the car to say hello. All three of them were squeezed by the very enthusiastic woman, then created some random in-the-moment handshake with Theo and finally gave Remi a hug.
"Can we help with any of your bags?" Chris politely asked, making Elsie smile knowingly and wiggle her eyebrows at Avery who just groaned and gave Chris an answer.
"You may," she smiled, patting his shoulder as she went closer to the house and unlocked the front door. "Don't you guys have a key? You could've waited inside, it's freezing out here!" Avery frowned, smiling over to the stumped faces of the triplets.
