Time - Luke Hemmings

Letter #13

Thirteen:

Alana's parents were the type who took long, spontaneous vacations and rarely visited their daughter with their newfound passion for travel and the fact that Alana had asked them for space after Ashton's death. It wasn't as if they were on bad terms but they didn't see much of each other, which is why Alana was surprised to pull open the door to her mother and father grinning at her that morning.

"Alana, darling!" Claire, Alana's mother, beamed as she pulled her daughter in for a warm hug. It had been at least two months since she had seen her parents, and although part of her missed them, it had been overpowered by the sadness and grief of Ashton's death and so, truthfully, she hadn't thought much of it, or of them. "Your hair is so long! But it looks lovely! Doesn't it, Derek? She looks beautiful."

Alana peered up at her father, who had a warm smile on his face. As much as Alana loved her mother, she had always had a special relationship with her father as a child. Whilst that relationship had become distant, seeing his face bought a hint of a smile to her face. After Ashton's death, her parents had been walking on eggshells around their daughter, as if she were fragile and broken. Alana wasn't broken, nor was she fragile. She was incredibly strong- she was just hurt.

"You look lovely, Alana." Her father smiled, pulling her in for a hug. Alana had yet to say anything, mainly because she wasn't really sure what to say. She hasn't expected to see them today, or for a while, and she began to wonder how long they planned on staying. Her parents lived in Portland, where she grew up, and so she assumed that they'd be staying for a day or two. She just hoped they had booked a hotel and didn't plan on staying with Alana.

"Aren't you going to invite us in?" Claire asked.

"Sure." Alana muttered, allowing her parents to enter her house before she followed them inside. Just as she closed the door, Calum emerged from the stairs with just a pair of shorts on, his hair wet from the shower he had just taken. He, too, was surprised to see Alana's parents stood at the bottom of the stairs, but he greeted them with smiles and hugs out of respect.

Alana's parents had believed that Alana and Calum's friendship would slowly evolve into something more as time went on, although they hadn't told their daughter of this because the two of them were devastated about Ashton's death and commenting on Alana and Calum's relationship would be insensitive. Her parents had loved Ashton like their own, but they appreciated that Calum looked after Alana.

"Do you ever wear clothes, Calum?" Claire asked in an amused tone as she kissed his cheek, sauntering over to the couch and taking a seat beside her husband as Calum and Alana stood side by side.

"I had a feeling you'd be coming, Claire." Calum replied, shooting her a grin to which Alana's mother laughs whereas Alana grimaces, even though she knows they're just joking. "Speaking of which- what brings you here?"

"We just got back from a trip and wanted to pay Alana a visit." Derek replied and Alana fought the urge to roll her eyes. "The house is looking lovely, darling."

"Thanks." She simply replied.

Claire sighed. "Come on, Alana, you've hardly said a word! Why don't we go out for dinner? All four of us?"

"I don't-"

"Sounds great." Calum blurted, receiving a wide eyed glare from his best friend. Alana didn't want to go out for dinner, in fact, she just wanted to stay at home and eat pizza with Calum like they had planned. "Do you guys want a drink?"

Once Claire and Derek gave Calum their orders, Calum dragged the blonde into the kitchen where they could speak out of earshot of her parents. Alana immediately batted Calum on the arm with a glare. Alana never really had a relationship with her mother. Claire was never around because of work and missed big moments in Alana's life, and so she had accepted that she'd never know what it was like to have a mother. That's also why Anne's coldness towards her hurt, because Anne was the closest Alana had ever had to a proper mother-daughter relationship.