Chapter Nineteen

When Hazel awoke, it was early in the morning, the sun only just having risen to the top of the treeline. The rays poked through the branches and spilled out golden strands through the pink, lilac and pale blue sky. There were a few white clouds streaking the sky and making everything look a little hazy in the dawn. She had forgotten to draw the curtains the night before, but she found she didn't mind being awoken given the sight it had gifted her.

She felt relaxed, almost boneless as she lay sprawled across the sofa, cuddled into Luna's warm embrace, with Sovereign's head resting on her lap with Alex spooning him from behind, the lot of them warmly tucked under a large blanket. 

This was something she hadn't felt very often before, this absolute comfort and calm. It made sense that being with her lover and her closest friends would allow her to feel so safe. She was sure that she would be absolutely fine when her parents inevitable arrived to try and drag her back to the city. She had all these people who loved her and wanted her around (not just for monetary gain or to have control over something). Her relationship with her parents had always been toxic, from the moment she was born. Hazel was glad to be rid of that life and she would be glad to be rid of her parents again once she made them leave. 

She found that she didn't care much about what they might have to say to her. She knew what she wanted, she knew that she would never opt to leave anything that she had built in her new home. She was more than ready to stand her ground. She earned enough with her blog to support herself and she had accrued a good amount of savings over the years from her old job working at her parents' magazine. 

They had no hold over her anymore. She just felt bad for the staff at their home that her parents must have harassed or possibly even threatened with unemployment in order to get the information about Hazel's current whereabouts. 

They were wonderful people, who had cared about her and her wellbeing far more than her parents ever had. They showed her over the years that they cared about what was in her best interests and supported her in her plans to escape and to finally take control over her own life. She owed them a lot and she hoped that they were all okay, that they weren't in danger of losing their jobs at all because of her choice to leave. Though, she knew without a shadow of a doubt that not a single one of them would put any blame on her and that none of them would have wanted her to suffer further for their sake.

Hazel snuggled down, her head still resting on Luna's shoulder. The small motion seemed to wake her girlfriend as in the next moment, Luna's hand was gently stoking through her hair. 

"Good morning." Luna greeted softly.

"Sorry for waking you." Hazel replied, smiling.

"There are worse ways to wake up than with your beautiful girlfriend resting on top of you." Luna said with a grin. 

"You got me there." Hazel laughed quietly, not wanting to wake the others.

"What are you thinking about?" Luna asked, still gently carding her fingers through Hazel's hair.

"Hmm?" Hazel hummed in question.

"You have that look on your face, like you've been thinking about something serious." Luna explained.

"Just thinking about my parents coming here to try and make me go back. I feel more confident than ever, especially after everything that's happened recently, that I will be able to stand my ground and tell them to leave. I know that you guys have my back, I have a life here, a real life that I have control over. I have friends and family here who actually care for me and don't just plan to use me. I'm not giving any of it up, not for anyone or anything." Hazel said, voice quiet but determined.

"I'm glad." Luna said, laying a soft kiss to Hazel's forehead. "Do you want me to stay with you until they've been and gone?" 

"I would like that a lot." Hazel replied. "But, how will that work? Will there be someone to cover you at the stables?" she asked.

"I was going to wait until all of this was over, but my cousin and his wife are moving home soon. They've just had their twins and they want them raised here, in our hometown." Luna answered.

"Why didn't you say anything?" Hazel asked, leaning up to look at Luna properly.

"I didn't want to say anything about it while we were all dealing with Alex and Sovereign's situation. I wanted to focus all my energy on that without having to add anything to everyone's plate. I know it's small and it's not a problem in any way, but it would just be another thing to have on our minds." Luna explained.

"I'm sure no one would have seen it as troublesome, but I can see where you're coming from. I'm sure the others will look forward to meeting your cousin and their family when they arrive." Hazel accepted. 

"I'll be inviting everyone over once they're settled in. They're going to take one of the guest rooms, the one with the double bed, and we'll be converting the other one into a nursery for the twins. I think it'll be nice to have more family around." Luna said, smiling. 

"You guys want to get breakfast?" Mrs Blackwood's asked, earning both of their attention.

"Yeah, I think that would be nice." Luna replied.

"Yeah, should we wake up these two?" Hazel agreed, gesturing to Alex and Sovereign, who were still curled up together with Hazel and Luna, fast asleep.

"Nah, let them sleep for a bit longer. The both of them deserve the rest." Mrs Blackwood said. "I'll get breakfast on the go. Is scrambled eggs and toast good for you girls? I'll fix some orange juice too."

"That sounds amazing, but I'm definitely going to come and help out." Hazel said, slowly and carefully slipping out from underneath Sovereign, replacing her legs with one of the sofa cushions, so as not to wake him or Alex with the movement.

"I'll come too." Luna added, standing up, luckily having been far enough at the end of the sofa to not have to worry about jostling the boys. 

They made their way to the kitchen, trying not to make too much noise. They shuffled into the room and Mrs Blackwood grabbed a frying pan out of the overhead cabinet as Hazel grabbed the bread and Luna found some glasses in the other cabinet over the counters for the orange juice. 

The girls made their way around the kitchen, putting breakfast together and setting the kitchen table. Mrs Blackwood artfully scrambled the eggs in the pan, the smell of it mixed with the freshly toasted bread and floated through the house deliciously. 

With the food plated for all of them, orange juice in the jug at the middle of the table, Luna  went to go and wake up Alex and Sovereign from where they still lay, entangled on the sofa.

"Hey guys, breakfast is ready." Luna said, shaking them lightly at the shoulders.

"Mmh, what? Breakfast?" Alex asked sleepily, gently squeezing Sovereign closer to himself as he awoke. 

"Yeah, sleepy head, scrambled eggs and toast." Luna replied amusedly. 

"Food?" Sovereign asked, also waking up.

"Yeah, come on, it's all ready and waiting in the kitchen." Luna said and turned to walk back to the kitchen table. "Come on."

"Alright, alright, we're coming." Alex replied, shifting with Sovereign to sit up properly, rubbing his eyes. 

Luna sat down at the table next to Hazel, while Mrs Blackwood sat herself down at the end, in front of the fridge. Slowly, Sovereign and Alex shuffled their way through to the other two chairs on the opposite side of the table and sat down. 

The food smelled delicious and looked even better. They quickly realised as they took their first mouthfuls of breakfast, how hungry each of them had truly been. They supposed that a massive town-wide hearing containing two entire villages where you have to speak for yourself in front of them really took the energy out of you and worked up an appetite.

They ate in relative silence for a while at first, all of them focused on thoroughly enjoying what they were eating. It was comfortable, with the sun filtering past the kitchen curtains and the sound of birdsong flitting around outside. 

"Thank you guys for doing all this." Sovereign spoke up, breaking the silence.

"You're welcome, though Mrs Blackwood did most of the work." Hazel said.

"Oh shush, you made the toast and got the drinks sorted, I just made the eggs." Mrs Blackwood replied with a smile.

"We all know that the eggs are the best part though." Luna said teasingly.

"Alright, alright, I'll just take the compliment, thank you." Mrs Blackwood conceded, shaking her head lightly as she let out a short chuckle.

"As you should." Hazel started softly. "You've done so much for all of us, I think I speak for the room when I say that you really deserve more thanks that we can ever offer."

"Hazel.." Mrs Blackwood was visibly touched by the sincerity.

"She's right. I don't know where we would be without you. I don't know where I would be right now if not for your support. I might be exiled again or even dead if not for how proactive you were in standing up for me." Sovereign agreed, unable to contain the extent of his gratitude. 

"Sovereign, you're family... of course I want to support you, of course I would go out of my way to help you, any of us here would do what we've done a thousand times over if we ever needed to. We love you." Mrs Blackwood said, getting a little choked up.

"Can I hug you please?" Sovereign asked, sounding small.

"Oh, honey, of course." Mrs Blackwood got up and went over to bring Sovereign into a motherly embrace. It was obvious how deeply she had come to care for the newest addition to their family.

The rest of breakfast went by with pleasant conversation and the silent knowledge that each of them were genuinely cared for and valued by the others. It was a foreign feeling to some, but more than welcome. There were certain unspoken worries and unresolved issues in the backs of their minds, but for the time being, they were put aside so that they could enjoy this time together, just being content and doing something perfectly normal and mundane. 

The day went by at a leisurely pace, Mrs Blackwood asked for some privacy and stayed around in the back room making phone calls and borrowed Hazel's laptop to send some emails. Meanwhile, Alex went out to the store to get some sweets from the bakery for an after-lunch dessert and Sovereign took Floss out for a walk. 

Luna stayed with Hazel, helping her take pictures for her blog and her social media. It was a quiet day, not much but the ambient sound of birdsong and their own casual conversation to be heard. It was the most ideal weather and atmosphere for getting the shots that they needed.

When they were done they went back inside and Luna made some fresh lemonade while Hazel went up to her room to start editing the photos and writing up her next blog post.

It was around four o'clock when Hazel's parents turned up on her doorstep, angry and ready to try their best at being manipulative. They had been expecting her to be alone, they had been expecting her to be having a hard time surviving without them. They hadn't expected for someone who wasn't even Hazel herself to open the door to greet them. 

Alex and Sovereign had returned from their respective errands around two hour prior and were taking up the sofa with Floss sitting across their two laps as Alex scrolled through his phone and Sovereign read a book from the library room. Both of them were absent-mindedly stroking Floss' soft white fur as they relaxed together.

Mrs Blackwood was still in the back room when Hazel's parents arrived and Hazel and Luna were still upstairs, Luna doing her own thing while Hazel continued with her work.

It was Alex who opened the door.

When he pulled it open the first thing that he thought was that Hazel looked more like her mother than her father, but that she had taken on his rich skin tone. She was similar to them in a few physical ways, yes, but the two strangers before him lacked any of the warmth and kindness that Hazel had in her eyes. They had a stern look about them, gazes hard and unforgiving, judgmental, even. 

However, Alex was not intimidated by them in the slightest and seemingly had thrown them for a loop with his relaxed demeanour. 

"Hello there, can I help you?" Alex asked innocently, feigning that he hadn't clocked who they were at first glance.

"We, young man, are Hazel Garcia-Sparrow's parents and we are here to collect our daughter. We know that she is here, so hand her over immediately." Mr Garcia spluttered indignantly before making his demands.

"Yeah, that's not going to happen." Alex replied casually, leaning against the door frame with his arms crossed over his chest.

"We demand that you step aside! Right now!" Mrs Garcia-Sparrow stomped her foot like a petulant child.

"I don't know who you think you are, but this is not your house and you have no right to make demands of me or anyone else under this roof, including Hazel. If she doesn't want to speak to you, then she has no obligation to do so whatsoever." Alex said, straightening his posture to cover the doorway.

Behind him, Sovereign moved to go to the stairs, in a bid to inform Hazel of her parents' arrival. He paid them no attention as he went, sparing only the briefest of glances in their direction, mainly focused on Alex.

"Is that another boy? Why are there two boys in this house? We did not raise Hazel this way! Bring her out here at once!" Hazel's father shouted furiously. 

"And what way would that be, exactly? I don't think Hazel is anything that you raised her to be and looking at you and your foul attitudes and bad manners, it's definitely for the better. She is far beyond anything you could ever hope to aim for. To say she's worth a hundred of you would be doing her a disservice. 

For your information, that man is my life partner and we are both close friends of Hazel, not that either of us owe an explanation to the likes of you." Alex replied.

"What's going on? Alex? Sovereign said there was trouble at the door." Hazel's voice came from behind Alex, Luna following a bit further back.

"Your DNA donors are here to see you." Alex said, turning to her with a bored expression.

"What did you call us?" Hazel's father questioned.

"Ah, it's mother and father then. What do you want?" She asked when Alex stepped enough to the side for Hazel to talk to them directly but not enough for them to be able to barge past him.

"You need to come home! We can't believe you were really irresponsible and childish to run away like that! You are in a whole world of trouble missy!" Her father spat.

"Really? You're going to barge into my home, harass my family, talk down to me as though I'm still a child and expect me to be cooperative with your ridiculous orders? I am an adult. I have a life partner. I have a high-paying job that I attained with nothing but my own talents and abilities. My life is my own and I do not belong to you. I am not an object or a piece of property or a bargaining chip for your business deals. Kindly get off of my property and don't come back." Hazel responded firmly.

"You insolent little brat! We raised you, put a roof over your head and food in your belly and this is how you repay is?" Hazel's mother screeched. 

"You mean you did the bare minimum required by law and spent the rest of the time palming me off to the maids, parading me around like a fancy piece of jewellery for your rich friends, and forcibly kept me isolated, confined and imprisoned in your house? That doesn't sound like very good parenting to me, or anyone with half a semi-defrosted heart for that matter. 

The pair of you are nothing but petty, manipulative, controlling, narcissists. You have the most unearned inflated sense of self that I have ever witnessed. 

You didn't raise me and you are not my family. The people I am with now are my real family. They actually know me, know who I am, they respect and love me and they care for me and support me, which is a damn sight more than I can say for either of you. You are nothing but blood-sucking leeches. You drain the life and joy out of everyone around you and push people around like a couple of tyrants.

I will not allow you to disrespect me, my home or my family like this. You abused me all my life and now you have stalked me and harassed me, and my friends. You are not welcome here and if you ever come back, I will file for a restraining order." Hazel said her piece, finally, after so many years of holding back and living in fear. 

It was freeing, a weight was lifted from her. This was it, the end of it all. 

"You call these strangers your family over us?" Hazel's father questioned, refusing to acknowledge the rest of what Hazel had said.

"The blood of the covenant is thicker than the water of the womb." She replied, simply.

"You little-" He mother was cut off mid-sentence. 

"Nope. That's it. I'm done. You need to leave. I am going to close this door now and if your are outside for more than 10 minutes after I do, I am going to call the police." Hazel said and Alex stepped away as she closed the door and locked it, leaving her parents standing flabbergasted and appalled on the other side.

Ten minutes passed and by the time they did, Hazel's parents were gone, nothing but a couple of obnoxious tire tracks left on the drive as evidence of their visit.

Everyone in the house breathed a tangible sigh of relief. Hazel had expected them to put up more of a fight or even get violent when she refused them. She was glad that it hadn't escalated to that point. She was glad that they were gone.

She had finally stood up to them, told them off for how they had treated her. If she had felt that sweet taste of freedom when she had first escaped their clutches, she was soaring now, wings full and strong having turned away the people who would have clipped the flight feathers.

She walked to the living room and slouched down on the sofa, sighing in relief once more. Luna followed, putting an arm around her and pulling her close.

"You did so good today, Hazel. We're so proud of you." She whispered lovingly in Hazel's ear.

"That was amazing." Alex said with a grin, plopping himself next to her.

"You did it. It's over now. You were so cool, with the way you told them off." Sovereign beamed proudly.

Hazel was so grateful, so unfathomably thankful for her friends, for her family. They meant the world to her, they were so special and precious and invaluable. She was so incredibly lucky to know such honest, kind, supportive people. They really had her back, more than anyone ever had.

The most she had known of this sort of kindness before was the maids in her home and maybe her old assistant, Derek. 

She had really been blessed to know all those people who had helped her and showed her what a real family should look like. The people who showed her how people really behave when their care is genuine and not pretended. The people who showed her what it was like to have friends for the first time, what it was like to fall in love, what it was like to belong somewhere...

finally.