F.R.I.E.N.D.S

17.

The Truth About;
Her & The Lies Too.

Love Willows.

There was never an ideal time to get bombs dropped on you, shocking you to your very core and leaving you speechless, Love had always handled situations where his family imploded with more calmness than a teenager could muster, he had always watched how his dad handled situations like the one he was faced with now, and copied it, yet in that moment it was hard keeping his composure.

"This is Marissa Bryant, your aunt." Those words echoed in his head ever since his uncle Marty had said them, and had repeated them twice now. "I know I heard that part, I'm still just struggling to accept that she is real and I can't deny it because she looks like my mother only a bit darker in complexion than her." Love responded as the woman he had been introduced to chuckled lowly.

"I inherited more of our father's traits than Merrel and so did our two brothers, your other uncles." Marissa explained earning more surprise from everyone even Darryl, Love's dad. "I have uncles." Love whispered. "It seems so liefde." Marco answered as he stood by his dad's side. "Merrel told me that she was an only child, of course I met your mother but the both of them told me and solidified that she was an only child." Darryl pointed out and Marissa scoffed.

"Typical of Merrel, she never liked being part of our family, she's always wanted the glamorous life, she's always wanted to be the queen, and if it meant she would convince our mother to help her spin her lie, then she would do it, our mother is just like her, even now, Merrel has always been her favourite, after all she gave her the fortune she wanted after our father died." Marissa expressed sadly, Love could've sworn she saw tears in her eyes but he couldn't focus on them.

He was trying to make sense of everything he was being told. "It still doesn't explain why you're coming forward now, why are you finally revealing everything now, because if I know my brother and his wife well, they will do everything and anything to make sure this never comes to light." Uncle Marty argued and indeed everyone in the room supported him, they knew how ruthless the Willows could be. "He's right, why?" Love asked further.

"Because Merrel is hell bent on sending my Hale to prison on charges that are ridiculous, he admitted to everything about attacking you, but I also know for a fact that you might have just defended yourself and your friend but that whole school beat him up." She asserted with a hardened tone.

"You're the golden apple, you're everyone's sweetheart, you're Love Willows and even the worst homophobe would want to worship you, no one, I mean no one would go against you and everyone will stand with you and that is exactly what happened." Marissa pointed out with clenched fists, her demeanour changing as she sat back down again.

"So you're saying its my son's fault that your boy attacked him?" Darrly demanded and Marissa shook her head in refusal. "No, never, Hale is to blame but the punishment he's being given does not fit the crime." She defended as finally Love wanted an answer to the one question he had about Hale. "Why does he blame me, when he attacked me, he claimed that I had been the reason for something bad that happened in his life and I am sure its not school related." Love asserted and Marissa nodded.

"Your mother and I were in love with the same man, Loch Willows, ever since we were young, his father was a close friend of our father, when they both died, well we drifted apart, Loch married Femi Norian, his Namibian sweetheart, seeing as Loch had gotten married both my sister and I decided to get married aswell." Marissa sighed then continued.

"She married Darryl and I married Gabe Bryant, and over time your mother and I drifted apart aswell, she had her own family and career, so did I but she never let go of Loch, when she got the opportunity to have him when Femi died, she took it." Marissa explained shedding a lot of light into the bit and pieces of the story Love knew already.