Runaway

Chapter 08

11.20.2018

Irene especially requested us to arrive earlier than everyone else. About eight hours too early. This is the first time she decided to invite everyone important she knew for a Thanksgiving dinner. She hopes she would turn this into an annual tradition and wants Aunt Sasha's help to make it so. In another lifetime, Aunt Sasha had worked for an event planner. That was until she met rich Uncle Blake and tied the knot.

The car stops in front of the entrance and Oliver is already at the door.

"I hate this party but I'm so glad you're here," he wraps me in a bearhug. "I haven't seen you in ages," he mumbles into my hair.

"I missed you too, Oliver," I laugh.

The last time we met was on New Year's Eve. Both of us had finally been in New York at the same time. Between my college, and Oliver's trip across Europe, our schedules rarely aligned. But now he had gotten an internship with a well-known wild-life photographer in New York so we could at least meet on the holidays.

"I wish Mom would let me ditch. Nick does it all the time. Like right now, he's already gone," Oliver grumbles as we head inside.

Irene pulls Aunt Sasha towards the family room as soon as we enter.

"Think Met Gala, but without the costumes," Irene babbles on waving her arms around the foyer. "I just want it to be as glamorous as it can be."

"Do you hear her? I have to wear a tux. Can you believe it, Mel? A tux," Oliver rambles on as Irene and Aunt Sasha get out of earshot.

"He's really not attending?" I ask, surprised.

"Who?" He raises an eyebrow.

"Nick," I roll my eyes, heading upstairs.

"I mean, maybe he shows up for the dinner. But who knows with him," he shrugs.

"Come on, I want to show you something," he squeals excitedly before dragging me inside.

Inside his room, he turns on his PC and shows me the photographs he took in Europe. Pictures of landscapes and animals fill up the screen. I watch in bewilderment at the beauty he managed to capture through a single lens.

"And look at this," he grabs a picture the size of an A4 paper and hands it to me.

"This is the one that won first prize at the wildlife photography competition I told you about."

It's a picture of two bright yellow birds sitting on a branch with a backdrop of green leaves. One of the birds is offering the other a small blue pebble.

"It's stunning, Oliver. I love it and I am gonna take this with me," I grin.

Time passes with us catching up with each other. I tell him all about Harvard and Emma and Kevin. He tells me about all the girls he met in Europe.

"There's something about European women, Mel," he smirks.

"Ew, Oliver."

"Come on, we better get dressed before my mother starts yelling," he rolls his eyes.

I head off into one of the many rooms in the Graysons giant mansion. This is the room I usually stay at every time we visit. My things have already been brought up. I grab the plain, navy-blue skater dress laid down on the bed and slip into it. Irene had mentioned to bring something fancy and this was the fanciest piece of clothing I owned. It was a sleeveless dress with a narrow cutout in the back.

Even though Uncle Blake is rich, that didn't mean Harry and I got much money. When I was in high school, I got a little pocket money to buy myself basic necessities like school supplies, clothes, and shoes. Basically, anything I needed, I had to get it with the meager amount of money given to me every week.