KIARA DROVE until they reached the Maybank House, and the tension in the car was rising. They all knew what could happen. One wrong move, and the plan would fail. Aurora felt a pit of anxiety in her stomach, as she took one last deep breath before they had to leave.
"Home sweet home." JJ tried to brighten the mood, but he was visibly nervous. He quickly got out of the car, so nobody could see the tears in his eyes.
Kiara hesitated, "Do you want me to come?"
"No." Rory replied quickly, as she climbed out of the car, "We'll only be a second, I promise."
"Be careful." Kie sympathised, sending a warm smile of luck.
The two hesitantly walked inside of their own house, Rory looked at the mess and dirty plates on the kitchen counter from weeks ago. She grimaced at the mess, whilst JJ walked into the living room.
Rory quickly followed behind him,
"Dad?" She called out, then she walked into the living room to see JJ standing over Luke.
"He's passed out." JJ said, "We're alright."
"Dad, we need the keys to the Phantom." Rory said bravely, trying to wake him up. Nothing.
JJ took a breath, before quietly trying to take the keys from the necklace around his neck. Unexpectedly, Luke opened his eyes, causing them both to freeze.
"I didn't expect to see you two here." Luke groaned, sitting up with a struggle, "You're back."
"W-We're just checking in." Aurora stuttered with anxiety.
"School out already?" Luke questioned, taking a sip from his beer bottle. The two twins shared a confused look, knowing that the amount of pills Luke had taken had messed with his head. Rory dropped out of school at 14, JJ doing the same to look after her through the struggles of addiction.
"What?" JJ questioned.
"Did you ditch?" Luke guessed, a unnatural kindness in his voice, which didn't suit him at all. He chuckled, "It's alright, you both can tell me."
JJ chuckled to himself through the tears in his eyes, "Yeah, we did. It was Rory's idea."
Luke's gaze turned to Rory, "My girl, I hated school too." He chuckled, "I couldn't be more proud of you both."
Rory wiped the tears rolling down her cheeks, as she watched as Luke stumbled to his feet. He put a hand on JJ and Rory's shoulder,
"Look, I know I'm hard on you sometimes." He said, "But sometimes, I see- I see your mother in both of you, and it gets me a little tweaky, you know?" He pulled the two teenagers into a hug, "I love you, you know?"
Aurora gritted her teeth, trying not to cry, but that burning lump in the back of her throat was so strong. JJ sobbed silently, as Rory wiped the tears from her face.
"I love you too, dad." JJ replied in a shaky voice, "I'm sorry."
"You got nothing to be sorry for." Luke reassured, as his body became weak again. JJ placed him on the couch, as he passed out again, whilst Aurora walked to the corner of the room.
She covered her hand over her mouth, as she sobbed silently into her palm. Rory's shoulders shuddered with each cry, as occasional cries escaped her lips.
JJ took the boat keys from the necklace around Luke's neck. He took a shaky breath, "You ready-" JJ stopped when he turned to see his sister, standing in the corner of the room facing the wall, "Hey, hey."
JJ hugged her from behind, which made the girl's cries become audible. She turned around to see her brother, tears staining his cheeks, and they both hugged each other tightly.
