Peyton Ackley - The Beginning of Change

Chapter 13 - A New Home

Waking up in the morning was honestly quite stressful when I realised I had to be at the airport in a matter of hours. Thankfully Gabe was excited to leave after he chatted with Noah, which was a relief in itself. Noah agreed yesterday to come by in the morning and even drive us to the airport, which I told him was not necessary, but he insisted.

The knock at the door at 7 am shocked me but honestly convinced me to get out of bed and get changed really quickly. By the time I had gotten downstairs, Noah was sitting on my couch with Gabe napping on his lap. 

"Did he let you in?" I asked Noah pointing at Gabe.

"Yeah, claimed you were taking too long," Noah replied. "You ready to go?"

"Yeah, I want to go back. I'm excited to properly start work at Arsenal, get to know the girls, get to show Gabe the city," I replied. "Should we wake up Gabe?"

Noah nudged him awake and Gabe rubbed his sleepy eyes as he processed what was happening. I had already collected all the bags at the front door the night before so we could get up as late as possible this morning.

"Do you want to go get ready?" I asked Gabe and he nodded taking Noah by the hand to go help him change.

"Okay, I'm going to talk to these two," I said gesturing to Spencer and Ally who had just walked into the living room.

The boys headed into Gabe's room while I went to speak to the couple. Spencer had been there for me since I was 17 and holding a newborn with nowhere to live and no one to help me. He was the reason I'm still alive today, to be honest, I don't know if I would have made it without his support. When Ally came into his life he didn't shut me out, and I'm so very thankful for everything he has ever given me.

"Thank you, Spence, for everything," I said moving towards him for a hug. He took me in his arms and rested his chin on my head holding me tight. 

"I've got you PJ, always," he replied.

I turned my attention to Ally and hugged her too. "I'm going to miss you both so much," I whispered into the hug. 

"You're welcome here anytime," Ally replied.

I thought a tear was going to run from my face but Gabe came running out dressed in his tracksuit pants and oversized t-shirt. His style was so influenced by Noah it was honestly hard to recognise that they weren't related by blood. 

"We need to go soon," said the blonde beach boy as he trailed the crazy five-year-old. "I'll go put the bags in the car."

"Thank you," I replied, "I'll be out in just a second".

I turned to Spencer and Ally taking them both into one last hug, I couldn't say goodbye because I was scared that my voice would break. We all walked out to Noah's car where Gabe was helping Noah put the bags in the car.

"Gabe, come say goodbye to Spencer and Ally, and thank them for looking after you," I said hoping my voice wouldn't break. 

Gabe waltzed over muttering something that only Spencer and Ally could hear but the smiles on their faces said it was enough. I loaded him into the car seat and waved goodbye to Spencer and Ally not wanting to have to say goodbye again.

The airport was busy. It's always busy. People are always going somewhere, but not everyone is sure when they're coming back. Noah got all the bags out of the car for me and even got Gabe out while I was slowly processing that this time I wasn't sure when I would next be home.

Noah opened his arms as I stepped onto the curb outside the drop-off zone. I leaned into his chest tucking my head into his shirt. I didn't want to go, but I enjoyed being over there so much that I knew all would be okay in the end. 

"I love you, Noah," I mumbled against his chest.

"I love you too PJ, see you in a couple of months."

The walk through the airport felt different. More often than not I forget that it's not normal for a 23-year-old to have a 5-year-old son, so I got many a look from other travellers. Gabe was used to it and didn't seem to mind the occasional glance. 

Customs and security were easy even with a young son, and Gabe, unlike me, didn't throw a tantrum getting onto the plane. The flight was long, as usual, but was peaceful with Gabe and me sleeping much of the trip.

Gabe was freezing when we got off the plane, thankfully I remembered to pack his hoodie into my carry-on. 

"It's so cold," he whispered as we walked towards the exit gates after collecting our bags.

"Yeah, it's a bit colder here isn't it?" I asked him.

In the pick-up queue, I could see the familiar face of Miles, he was kind enough to offer me a ride home. He began to approach me but he stopped when he saw that I had company. I mentally face palmed at the realisation that I forgot to tell him we needed a car seat.

"Hi PJ," he said glancing down at Gabe.

"Hi Miles," I replied not realising Gabe had begun to hide behind my legs. "Gabe," I said trying to encourage him to come greet Miles. "Gabriel Antonio, come say hi."

Yes, Antonio is his middle name, and he is named after his father but that seemed like the only way to help him remember where he came from.

"Hi Gabe, my name's Miles," he spoke softly squatting down to my son's height.

"Hi," Gabe whispered. "Mumma, who's this?" he asked looking up to me.

"This is Miles, I started working with him before I got my new job with Arsenal, he's pretty funny."

Miles gave me the familiar look of we're talking about this later, which I neglected to respond to. The trip back to my new house wasn't long but gave Miles and Gabe a chance to get familiar. 

"You ready to go see your new room?" I asked Gabe as we pulled up to the house. It was exactly as I'd left it.

I wasn't sure whether to get Gabe another race car bed like his one at home, keep something familiar you know? But I decided against it. I got him a stereotypical 'teenager' bed as he calls it, with black metal framing. Although the car bed was gone I made sure to hang up some stuff that would remind him of home around his room. I'd gotten two surfboards that looked like something he'd like mounted to the wall and got him a new bookshelf and some new toys. 

I had warned him that it looked different from his old room, but he didn't seem too opposed. When he saw the surfboards on the roof he asked me where his board was, but I told him that Noah was bringing both of our boards over with him.

"Do you like it, my boy?" I asked him as he jumped onto his bed.

"Mhm," he nodded with a smile on his face.

"And don't worry, I'm ordering some new LEGO sets for you soon," I smirked.

His smile only grew brighter and it made me realise that as long as we were both together nothing could go wrong. Seeing Gabe happy in this new place was all I needed to confirm that this move was right for not only me but also him. 

Gabe laid down in his bed pulling the covers high up over his head hiding from the light outside. It had been a lot of travelling so I didn't blame him when he shut his eyes to sleep.

"Welcome to your new home Bubba," I whispered and placed a kiss on his forehead.

A perfect start, if I do say so myself.

WORDS: 1323

a/n: kinda cute chapter, don't know how I feel about it but she's back in London with the team