If We Took It There

Friends and Family

Clay walked through the door and into the foyer of the Hunter mansion.

He called out, "V!"

When she didn't answer, he looked in the mini kitchen and the living room. There was a sandwich on the table and not one bite.

Weird.

When he heard footsteps, he expected to see V come bouncing down the stairs. Instead of V, Mr. and Mrs. Hunter appeared. Ever since V first brought him home, they insisted he call them Mum and Dad. Lorraine Hunter headed straight for him and hugged him. He grinned and returned the hug.

"Clayton, darling."

"Hi, Mum."

When she released him, she said, "You've gotten bigger, hmm? I haven't seen you in days."

Before he could offer an apology, Finnigan Hunter engulfed him in a fatherly embrace, "Hello, son."

"Hi, Dad."

He released him and asked, "How have you been?"

Clay shrugged, "Been quite busy. School and taking care of my siblings is a lot of work."

Mr. Hunter clapped him on the back, "If you ever need an escape, our home is always open for you."

"Thanks, Dad. How is Luxuria?"

"No need to be polite, son."

"Oh, I'm not being polite. I really do want to know."

Before Dad could answer, Mum tugged on his arm and said, "Uh-uh. No. You're helping me make dinner and Clay is going to see Vidia."

Dad winked at him and moved in to kiss his wife. When they broke away, he kissed her nose and saluted, "Sir, yes, sir."

Mum laughed, slapped him on the bottom, and said in a commanding voice, "To the kitchen, soldier. March!"

Clay chuckled as he watched them both march toward the kitchen, hand in hand.

He headed up the stairs and into V's bedroom. He strode in and immediately noticed she was on the bed, laying down.

V is never idle. What the hell?

"V? What's wrong?"

She opened her eyes and he could see now that she had been crying.

"How did you know something was wrong?"

He walked towards the bed and she moved over to make some room for him. He took off his shoes, set down his glasses on her bedside table, and got into bed with her. He pulled her towards him and she immediately snuggled into him. She felt so right in his arms. If only she could see him as more than her geeky friend. She poked him, bringing him out of his thoughts.

He cleared his throat, "My V senses were tingling."

She laughed and the sound caused every nerve in his body to tingle.

"Seriously," she said.

"I just felt something was off so I came over. What happened, V?"

"Colt and I had a fight."

"What about?"

"He accused Mum of ruining his father's life."

He laughed, "Mum? Ruining someone's life? She couldn't hurt a fly."

"I know, but you forget that Mum is the Ice Witch and that she trained more than a dozen of the world's most deadly assassins."

"Right. I forgot about that."