(Y/N)'s POV:
My parents were fuming when they found out I had left home on a flight back to the same city my aunt died in. But there was nothing they could do. My flight had already landed and I was already at my aunts house. Not to mention that my birthday was tomorrow. Even if they wanted to try something, I would be a legal adult before they could do anything.
I pulled out my phone and checked my messages. I had told EJ that I would be back and asked if he would meet me once I got off my flight.
No response yet.
I sighed and decided to tidy up the house instead.
A thin layer of dust blanketed almost everything in sight and the spiderwebs in the corners of the rooms threatened to take over the whole house.
At least there were no murderers.
That I knew of.
Man.. it would really suck if there was a murderer in the house.
Haha.
I pushed away my intrusive thoughts and got to cleaning. I dusted every surface, swept the floors, vacuumed the carpets, tidied things up, and maybe even had a bit of fun while doing it.
Until I heard the front door opening.
I froze, standing in the middle of the kitchen, hoping that maybe it was just the friendly neighborhood Spiderman.
"Hello? Who's there? Why are all the lights on?" came a familiar voice.
My shoulders relaxed and I let out a breathe of relief.
It was just my uncle.
Of course it was. This was his house.
"Uhh.. hey.. its me.. (y/n).." I squeaked out, utterly embarrassed at myself for completely forgetting about my uncle's existence.
At least he wasnt a murderer.
My uncle and I took some time to catch up and then he informed me that he was no longer living at the house.
"What do you mean? Where are you staying then? Why are you here?" I questioned.
"It's hard being here without your aunt.. she.. gave life to this home. I can't bring myself to stay here but I also can't bring myself to sell it. I got an apartment not too far away, so I only stop by every so often to make sure no one's broken in," he explained, scratching his head and glancing around the room.
That broke me a little.
Before I could respond, my uncle continued on.
"Say (y/n), how about we make a deal? I'll let you stay here as long as you want.. on the condition that you keep the place looking clean like it is now and you keep it the way your aunt left it. How's that sound?"
I pondered his words for a few moments.
Was he... giving me the house?
"Yes of course, I'll leave it exactly how she left it and make sure it stays clean," I promised.
"Alright then, it's all yours. I wont be needing to visit anymore but if I do, I'll warn ya' ahead of time. I'm assuming you might need something to get you from A to B as well.. you can drive your aunt's car if you'd like. Just take care of it, you hear?" he replied, a grin spreading across his face.
I could barely contain my excitement.
"Yes of course! Thank you so much, I really couldn't have asked for a better uncle, thank you," I responded, allowing myself to match his smile.
He showed me where the keys were and did a general walk of the house with me, making sure I knew where I could find anything I needed and noting the things he wanted me to be extra careful with.
After that, he said his goodbyes and went back to his apartment, leaving me on my own.
I grabbed my phone and immediately lit up at the sight of a message from EJ.
EJ: Yes, when does your flight get in? We need to talk about the chief as soon as possible. Also, I'm glad to have you back :)
I may have squealed at the last sentence.
May have.
I wondered how long I should wait before replying but decided to just get it over with. I didn't respond immediately of course though. I'm not a psycho. Yet.
Me: I'm actually already at my aunt's house, my uncle just told me I can have the place to myself ^u^
EJ: Really?? I'm happy for you! I'm assuming you want to rest after your flight? We could talk tomorrow if you'd prefer.
Now's my chance right?
Me: I probably won't be able to sleep tonight haha. The house is kind of scary when Im here alone. Would you want to come over tonight and catch up on everything that's happened?
I tossed my phone as I hit 'send' and covered my face with my hands. I couldn't believe I actually had the ability to send that.
I took a deep breath and tried to calm myself down. It wasnt like I had asked him to stay the night, although I kind of wished he would.
Sigh.
I heard my phone buzz and felt my stomach turn into knots.
I gathered the courage to pick it up and read the message.
EJ: Don't worry, I'll come over and protect you, (y/n) ;) What's the address?
AHHH.
I definitely squealed at that message.
The winky face?????
What was he trying to say?
I tried to keep calm while I sent him the address and thanked him for being my knight in shining armor.
I figured he was just joking around when he said that so I decided to joke back, although in some odd way I didn't mind the thought of him coming to "protect" me.
Don't get me wrong, I did not need a man to protect me. I could take care of myself perfectly fine on my own. In fact, I'd been doing it most of my life.
But that's the thing.
You hold your guard up for so long, doing anything you can to protect yourself, stay strong for as long as you can, but after a while you get tired. Everyone does eventually. But most people have someone they trust to take over for them. And wouldn't it be so nice to have that? Someone you trust so much that you can let your guard down and know that they will protect you just as hard as you've protected yourself all this time.
Wouldn't it be nice?
Maybe a small part of me wanted EJ to be that person.
Was that so bad?
I sighed.
It was hard for me to trust people, and I knew that deep down, a part of me was terrified of letting EJ get any closer. What if I just ended up getting hurt in the end? What would be the point in trying?
Would you rather get hurt and know how it ended or spend your whole life wondering what could have been, wondering if you missed out on something great? Wounds can heal, but you can't heal a wound if it was never there in the first place.
I sighed. Maybe I just needed a sign.
Knock. Knock.
Okay well maybe not that soon.
I got up from the couch and made my way to the door.
It was EJ.
If this was a sign from the universe, someone tell the universe I cant read.
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1240 words
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