"Where is Natasha?" Dom asked. He walked into the living room and was surprised to not see her there.
"Oh, so you can finally show up after how many hours of disappearing," Ernest scoffed.
"It is not like that at all, grandfather. I was just busy," Dom laughed sheepishly as he sat down. He knew that his grandfather would be upset that he was avoiding being here while Natasha was present.
"Busy doing what?!" Ernest frowned.
"Doing a lot of things. I had to remove all the bags from the car, I went to check on Joy, and mom asked me to go and find dad, which by the way disappeared to the kitchen on our way here," Dom said.
"You think I am dumb or what? Why are you avoiding Natasha?" Ernest asked. He hit Dom on his head before he could sit down.
Dom winced from the hit, he expected it, he definitely did, but it did not stop it from still hurting. For a man his age, his hits were still very much strong.
"No, I do not think that at all, grandfather," Dom said. "And I was not avoiding Natasha, I just wanted her to feel better quicker and that happens faster when I am not around, believe me, I have tried and tested this method and it is the most effective.".
Ernest turned to Margaret who was sitting beside him, she laughed, she knew what his gaze meant, and she was simply wishing Dom good luck.
"Are things between you and Natasha not well again?" Ernest frowned.
"Far from it, our relationship is very good at the moment, and that is why I do not wish for anything to upset her," Dom said.
"I am glad that is the case. I do not want you guys to not be on good terms, I want you two to be happy," he said.
"And we are happy for now. I am sure that this week away from all the noise, stress and bustle of the city will make us more relaxed than ever, and we will be very, very happy," Dom smiled.
"I am glad, I hope that Natasha gets better soon so she will be truly able to enjoy herself here," Margaret smiled.
"Mhmm, so where is Alfred? I thought he would be here to see us?" Dom asked.
"He's tired and it is better that he rests tonight, I am sure he will be here first thing tomorrow," Margaret said.
"Alright then," Dom said. He yawned, he was tired from all the driving, from all the stress of the day. To think that tomorrow he would not have to wake up early to prepare breakfast. He would not need to go to work, he could just sleep in for once.
"Father, are you hungry?" Margaret smiled.
"No, I am hungry, yes, but I do not want to eat at this time. My doctor says that I should not eat anything after eight pm," Ernest said.
"Oh, alright, then. I just cannot wait for tomorrow, Joy is going to make this house be full of laughter tomorrow," Margaret laughed.
"Oh yes, that is true, so very true," Ernest laughed as Dom laughed as well.
That was nothing but the pure truth. Dom loved this feeling, it was the feeling of being relaxed. There was nothing better than being with your family and laughing together.
Dom yawned, reminding himself that he was exhausted yet again.
"Are you tired Dominic?" Margaret was quick to notice him yawning.
"Very, I am so exhausted," he cracked his neck.
"Your room is prepared, you should go and get some rest. It was such a long trip, tomorrow will be a new day," she smiled.
"You know what mom. You are right, I do need some sleep," Dom yawned once more. He stood to his feet.
"Goodnight, grandfather, goodnight mother," he placed a soft kiss on his mother's forehead.
"Goodnight," Ernest and Margaret smiled.
"It feels so nice to have him back home, don't you think, father?" Margaret turned to him and smiled.
"I could not agree more. I cannot wait for what the week has in store for us," Ernest smiled.
"Me too, father, me too.".
"Where is junior? He too has disappeared," Ernest frowned. What was with his son and grandson disappearing? It was definitely a gene they did not get from him. He did not like not knowing what was going on, he was always present, especially during family gatherings.
"Well, father you know how your son can be. He went off to who knows where when he realized that the entire house is going to be full with people who might remove his stuff from where he put them," Margaret laughed.
"I do understand that it has been a while since there have been children in the house, but he should be happy. Having everyone over here is like a dream come true.".
"I agree father, but it's almost everyone," she replied.
"What do you mean almost everyone?".
"Nine is not coming, he said that he has some personal things to take care off that are very important," Margaret said.
"I somehow expected that he would make up some sort of excuse just not to come here," Ernest frowned.
Ernest would be lying if he said he was not happy with the fact that Nine was the only one that would not be here. Out of all the boys, Nine was the most reserved, he always listened and he was always there, so for him not to be here this time, he could not help but feel that this week would feel incomplete.
"I do not think that you should be upset with him. You know that he is very sensitive and I think we should just respect his decision," Margaret was quick to say. She knew this news would make him upset, but they had to understand that the boys were not boys anymore. They were men with their own choices and goals.
"What do you mean by that?" Ernest frowned.
"Nothing, I am only saying that he should not receive any excessive calls, and we should not talk to him if we are upset with him, because that will only make him upset and us even more upset," she said.
"I had no intentions of calling anyone. I just want to enjoy having all my children and grandchildren and great grandchildren all in the same place," Ernest smiled.
He would not lie, he was upset, but he knew better than to interfere in whatever they were going through except they called to ask for his opinion. He honestly wished that they all lived nearby, it would be nice to see them all everyday.
"And I am so happy about that as well, father," Margaret smiled and kissed the back of his hand. "Are you ready to go back home now? Let me walk you there," she said.
"You have always been a darling, my dear Maggie," he smiled at her. She was truly a daughter-in-law. With all the years she had stayed married to his son, he was so happy that his son had chosen the right woman. He only wanted his grandson to choose wisely the same way his father did.
Natasha was the right woman, there was no doubt about that, it was simply the wrong timing and in the wrong manner.
"And you have always been the father, I wanted, so let me help you up," she chuckled and stood to her feet. She helped him up and hooked her arm with his.
"Thank you dear, what would I do without you?" Ernest laughed and she simply smiled.
"You do not have to thank me father, without you, who would I have to do all these sweet things for?" she chuckled.
...
There is was, the familiar gates of the estate that Michael knew all too well. They were the gates of sweet relief, the gates that signified his triumph over fatigue, traffic and exhaustion.
As he drove through the gates after they opened, he could not help but shout silently in freedom. He laughed to himself. He looked to his left and behind him only to see Lulu and Charlie who were fast asleep.
One side of him was happy that they managed to sleep through all the torture, but the other side of him wanted someone to partake in the suffering with him. He knew that they would be very excited once he parked in the driveway and told them that they had arrived.
Driving past the various houses with their lights on brought him so many memories of nostalgia. He would have cried had he not been enraged from how much traffic there was.
And there it was, the street they grew up in, the park they played in and the houses, that held so many memories, both good and bad.
Michael pulled into the driveway in excitement. As soon as he did, he turned off the car and took a moment to calm himself down.