Coming Home

Chapter 8

The day after my talk with Cayden I found myself on the couch at Tegan’s parent’s with Tegan beside me, clutching my hand in hers, and her parents across from us. She was telling them she was moving out and she wanted me there for support. Plus, I had promised to help her pack.

“Are you sure this is what you want?” Brian, her dad, asked while studying her face.

“Yes Daddy, it is. I can’t stay with you guys forever, no matter how much I want to. I have to start living my life and this is the first step,” she explained, her grip on my hand tightening.

Her parents were silent as they studied their youngest child. Tegan was the only girl in a group of five children. Her brothers were all grown up and gone by now, but everyone knew they’d be back in a second if anyone tried to hurt her.

“Honey, you’re twenty years old, we can’t tell you no. However, I will tell you that you’re the one that has to tell your brothers,” Megan, her mom, said.

At that, Tegan’s eyes widened and she gripped my hand even tighter, practically cutting off the circulation.

“Release the hand. I do need it to function, you know,” I said after a minute as her grip kept getting tighter.

“I don’t want to tell them Mama. You know how they’ll react,” Tegan pleaded.

“Which is exactly why you’re the one that needs to tell them. Your mother and I should not be the ones to listen to their rants,” Brian, her dad, answered.

“But-“ Tegan started but I interrupted her.

“Hey look at it this way. You have to tell your brothers that you’re moving in with a guy that they’ve known and loved his entire life. I had to tell my brothers and my dad that I was pregnant and moving across the country. I think you have the better deal,” I reasoned.

She looked thoughtful for a minute before slowly nodding her head.

“You’re right. I’ll go call them,” she said, standing up and pulling her phone out of her pocket.

“Speaking of that, you need to get those boys of yours here soon. I want to see them sweetie,” Megan said, scolding me.

“I will Mama Bear. I want to get the situation with Daddy under control first so that when they’re here I can devote all my time to them,” I answered.

Both parents stared at me for a moment, smiles plastered on their faces.

“You truly are a mom,” Brian said in awe.

I smiled at them before standing up to hug the people that have been surrogate parents to me my entire life. I kissed them on the cheek before walking out of the room to find Tegan.

“Carson, I don’t care if you don’t want me to. It’s my life and I want to move in with Liam so I will. No! I-“ she was saying, looking so frustrated and flustered that I took the phone from her.

“Car-Car, are you giving my best friend trouble?” I asked, using the name I gave him when I was three.

“Makenzi? Is that you?” he asked, surprised.

“The one and only. Now, back to important matters. Why are you troubling your sister when she’s trying to live her life?” I asked, smiling at Tegan, who was giving me a grateful look.

“My baby sister is not moving in with some guy,” Carson, Tegan’s youngest brother, practically growled.

“Now you know he isn’t just ‘some guy’ Carson. You’ve known Liam practically his entire life and you’ve watched out for him that entire time. Everybody knows he’s like a little brother to you so don’t go into Big-Brother-Protective-Mode and forget about that. You know as well as I do that you wouldn’t want Tegan with anyone else,” I retorted.