The steps groan as we walk. Harold's heavy footsteps follow us and when we reach the hallway, Harold points his finger to the door of the spare room, looking at Wren.

"You're in here, buddy," he says firmly.

Heat rushes to my cheeks. Wren's mouth twitches, I can tell he finds it amusing. Harold is the kindest, most gentle person I know, it's quite humorous that he is trying to seem like the tough guy.

"Yes, sir."

Wren flashes me a grin, before disappearing through the door. I fold my arms across my chest. Harold peers back at me, mirroring my stance.

"Oh my God, Harold, we don't need a chaperone!" I groan.

My foster father huffs, his wispy, greying moustache moving at the rush of air.

"I think you do."

I face-palm while we wait for Wren. When he steps back out, his fingers drum against his leg awkwardly.

"Keen for a movie?" I ask.

"Sure."

When we reach downstairs, Eileen has prepared ice cream, lightly dusted in chocolate. Wren's face lights up when he sees it. I wonder if he has anything like this at home, with his mum either absent or when she is there, distracted.

It takes longer than it should to pick a movie. Eileen tells Harold to go upstairs and leave us alone, but he refuses, so we had to pick one that all three of us would like, and we all have wildly different tastes.

Wren sprawls across the long lounge and I rest so that I'm half on the lounge, half on his legs, a blanket draped over us. Harold frowns at us but doesn't comment.

Wren's fingers trail up and down my arm and I nestle into him, finally feeling relaxed.

I must have fallen asleep through the movie, because what feels like seconds later, Wren is shaking me awake. I blink at the credits rolling across the screen.

"Damn it," I grumble. "Now I don't know what happened."

I yawn loudly, and my back cracks when I stand. We shuffle back upstairs blearily and brush our teeth. I'm disappointed I won't be sleeping with Wren beside me. Everything is better when he is there. I sleep easier and I don't have nightmares.

He runs his hand down my arm and plants a kiss on the side of my head.

"Goodnight," he murmurs.

"Night, Wren. See you in the morning."

Harold waits until Wren is inside his room with the door closed before he moves to his own room. I roll my eyes.

"Night, Pumpkin," he says. "Sleep well."

"You too."

The door shuts behind me and I fall into bed, exhaustion gnawing at me. I sag into the mattress and stare up at the ceiling. Despite how tired I feel, knowing Wren is only a few feet away is distracting.

After a few moments, the house is blanketed into silent darkness. I roll to my side and place my hand on the empty side, wishing Wren was lying next to me.

I'm not sure how much time has passed, but my door opens sometime later. Quiet, padding steps are heard and then the bed dips. I reach out and touch him. He slides underneath the blanket, his legs wrapping with mine.

"Hi," I whisper.

"Hi," he smiles.

He's warm and soft. I inch closer.

"Tomorrow, I'm meant to be meeting my sister with mum. We're doing lunch. Do you want to come?"

"I'd love to," I whisper, pressing my palm to his chest. I feel the steady thump of his heart. "Would anyone mind?"

"No."

"Okay."

His hand covers mine and we're quiet for a moment, our breaths fanning each other's faces. I lean forward and kiss him. I sigh in relief at the feel of him. I crave it. I push him onto his back and move to straddle him. The kiss deepens and he runs his hands up my thighs.

He pulls at my shirt and throws it to the floor. His hands explore my body, cupping and gripping me in all the right places. I grind my hips into him and he moans quietly. I pull at his shorts and he shoves them down his legs. I raise myself so I'm on my knees. His hands secure my waist and steadily, I lower. I gasp when I feel him fill me. I pause for a moment, letting myself get used to the feel of him.

"Okay?" he whispers.

"Yes," I whisper back before I slowly move.

We both let out a groan at the same time as he pushes inside me deeper. I hardly dare to breathe as we move faster. My mattress squeaks with each movement. He suddenly thrusts upwards and our skin smacks together. I'm terrified they will hear us, but I don't tell him to stop. I don't want him to.

Sweat shines across my forehead as we move together, harder and faster with each thrust. I fling forward, burying my face into his shoulder, trying desperately to silence myself. I slump against him, breathless. Our skin is slippery with sweat.

His arms securely wrap around me and I lay my cheek on him.

"Well. Fuck." Wren chuckles. "I would have died if we got caught, but it would have been worth it."

I let out a breathless laugh. I sit up and wince slightly as I lift myself off of him. I quietly slip into the hall and go to the bathroom. I wash my face and fan myself, trying to cool myself down. I slip back into my room and lay down beside Wren, curling into his side, before falling into a peaceful, deep sleep.

***

Having Wren sitting beside me in the kitchen, chewing happily on his toast, chatting away to Eileen is perfect. It feels right. He has an effortless way about him. He can talk a lot about nothing at all, ensuring there are never any awkward silences. I wish I could do that.

I dress in a maroon sweater, tight jeans, and black leather boots. I let my hair hang naturally down my shoulders. I feel nervous, meeting Wren's family. I don't know what to expect. I've never done this before.

"You look nice," he says, curling his arm around me, smiling.

"Thanks, you do, too."

"Ready to go?"

I find it hard to get words out so I nod. I tug at my sleeve. Wren glances at the movement and rubs a hand over my back.

"Don't be nervous."

Harold has lent us the car to drive, to meet Wren's mum. Considering I'm a ball of nerves, Wren silently takes the keys from me and walks around to the driver's seat. I didn't ask Harold permission for him to drive, but considering I don't often, I'm betting that he is a lot better driver than I am.

We go through the drive-thru on the way to his house and get ourselves and Wren's mum a coffee. When we pull up to his house, it's quiet and looks like no one is home.

"Mum?" Wren calls when we enter.

A quiet groan is the response, and we walk into the lounge room. A woman is hunched over on the lounge. She is gorgeous. Striking blue eyes, pale, heart-shaped face, and jet-black hair. She is wrapped in a blanket, leaning back, looking tired.

"You're hungover," Wren says bluntly.

"Headache," she replies.

"Because you're hungover."

She moves her eyes to meet her son's and blanches when she notices me. She quickly reels to a sitting position, an embarrassed look falling across her face.

"Hi," I say quietly and clear my throat. "I'm Addison."

"Hi," she quickly says, getting to her feet. "I'm Elenore."

"Nice to meet you."

"You too," she smiles. "Sorry, I would have dressed... if I'd known."

"You should be dressed," Wren growls. "We're leaving in fifteen minutes."

She ignores him and rubs at her eyes. He shoves the coffee into her hand.

"Seriously, we haven't seen Tiana for months. Don't fuck this up."

I flinch at his tone and watch Elenore wearily, but she acts like she hasn't heard him. She mumbles thanks for the coffee, before leaving the room, moving a lot slower than a woman her age should.

Wren exhales, shaking his head. He gestures for me to sit and I do. The lounge is extremely worn, parts of the fabric are torn. The house is dark and stuffy, seeming as though it hasn't breathed fresh air for a while.

As if reading my mind, Wren moves around the room, shoving open the windows. The screen as he slides them, light spilling into the room. It makes a difference, lightening the place up, but also highlighting the various imperfections.

The sound of vibrating fills the room and Wren spins around, looking for the source. A phone sitting on the coffee table is lit up and he answers it.

His face falls as he nods. He remains calm as he speaks to whoever it is, but his fist is clenched at his side. I get to my feet and hover nervously near him.

"They fucking cancelled," he hisses, once the phone call is over. "Again. What the fuck!"

"Tiana's foster family?" I ask gently. "Did they say why?"

"No. All she said is that they're unable to make it. We were literally about to leave." Wren's foot slams into the lounge and it slams against the wall with a loud crack. I jump in alarm. He swears and stalks out of the room.

Elenore appears, not having changed, still. "Cancelled, right?"

I nod mutely.

"Fantastic." I can't tell if it's sarcastic or genuine. She sinks into the lounge and withdraws a cigarette. "You want one?"

I've cut down my smoking by almost half and even though I'd really enjoy one, I shake my head. "No, thanks."

She leans back into her seat and blows out a cloud of smoke. It drapes around the room and I realise that's why it's so hard to breathe in here. It's better now, though, that the windows are open.

Wren walks back into the room, looking tense.

"We could still go out for lunch?" I suggest. "Just us three?"

He blinks at me in surprise for a moment, before looking at his mother. She takes a long drag.

"Thanks, hon, but I'm not feeling up to it. You two go."

"Awesome," Wren replies through gritted teeth. "Great spending time with you."

He clutches at my hand and stalks out of the room. I glance over my shoulder to see Elenore sitting there, looking at the wall, expressionless.

"God, she is infuriating," he snaps, slamming the door shut behind him.

"I'm sorry."

He exhales, long and hard, staring at the steering wheel.

"Me and you can do lunch," he says.

"Maybe we could go bowling afterward? That could be fun."

He smiles, leaning over and touching my knee. "Sure. Let's do that."

We order lunch and sit down by the water. Our legs dangle over the edge. The waves crash into the rocks below us and the salty air kisses our faces. I take in a long breath and watch the angry, swirling waves, thinking back to Wren's house, and Elenore.

"You're all I need, Addison."

"Hmm?" I ask him, pausing my chewing.

"Everything is fucked," he releases a strained laugh. "But I have you. And that makes all of this a lot better."

I smile, leaning over and touching my hand over his.

"I'll always be here."

"I love you."

I inhale sharply. The words hang between us and his eyes bore into mine. I wrap my hand around his tightly.

"Wren," I whisper. "I love you, too."

He brings my hand to his mouth and kisses it.

"Come here."

I scoot over to him and bury my head into his shoulder. He presses me tightly to him.

At this moment, everything that has gone wrong is nothing. Because I have Wren, and he has me. And that's all that matters.

-------------------

Thoughts? :)